Black Hearted Warrior
by Izzybella12
Summary: They accused him of murder and of betraying them to their enemies. They threw him in Tartarus, never to see the light of day again. But Percy Jackson has always done the impossible. He escaped the inescapable pit, but the years have done damage to his mind and soul. Armed with a new, incredibly powerful ally, Percy Jackson is out for immortal blood. OOC characters. Dark!Percy
1. Chapter 1

**Hi there! So, chapter one of my twelfth story! :) Yay! I hope to see new faces and old (not literally; all I see are your usernames, but you know what I mean). Most of all, I hope that you all like this story! If you love it, that's even better! Couple things to know about my writing and me (sorta):**

 **1) I update every four** **, unless I tell you otherwise. That will always be stated in my AN. If you don't read my ANs, then it's your own fault for not realizing why I'm missing an update. I changed it from my last story to be able to write longer chapters.**

 **2) I will not update sooner or write longer chapters. Getting that out of the way now. Please refrain from asking. It's okay if you forget once or twice.**

 **3) I accept PMs! Any questions, comments, or concerns can be left in a review/comments, but always feel free to PM me! If you're also writing a story and want me to read it, again, send me a PM! I'll read it without complaint and will give compliments/helpful criticism.**

 **4) I do not accept flames/unnecessary rudeness and meanness. In short, if you're a jerk, I'll call you out on it. Or send you a PM if you're a member. Maybe both. Swearing is not always considered flaming.**

 **5) I accept swearing. This story is rated T. It may (most likely) include future swears and possible swear rants. If there is a swear rant I'll try to warn you.**

 **Don't worry though. :) I accept suggestions and constructive criticism, and as long as you respect me, I'll respect you. :) Now for the (dreaded) disclaimer. I own nothing, but I hope you guys enjoy the first chapter of my new story anyways! :)**

 **Percy's POV (aka Point Of View)**

Zeus stood up from his throne and bellowed out my sentence. "You, Perseus Jackson, are sentenced to life in Tartarus!"

I stepped back, aghast. They can't be serious. I didn't do it. I was framed. I looked over to my dad, hoping to get some support. Instead, all I saw was a man that looked like my father glaring angrily in my direction. His green eyes were hard as steel, his mouth set in a furious scowl. That was the moment Poseidon stopped being my father.

I gazed around at the rest of the assembled Olympian Council. They were all staring at me as I stood in the middle of the throne room. Demeter looked disappointed in me, shaking her head in disbelief at _me_ , not Zeus's accusations. Hera looked between Zeus and me, before deciding she agreed with Zeus, after which she glared at me. Artemis looked confused, while Aphrodite seemed sad. Probably because her perfect match wasn't so perfect after all. Athena looked to be furious with me, although the affect was slightly lost by her red-rimmed, watery gray eyes. Apollo was shaking his head at me. I wasn't sure if he was mentally saying "why'd you do it man? You were so cool!" or if he was just rocking out to the music on his iPod. Ares was sharpening a battle axe from his throne, staring dead at me (which isn't terrifying _at all_ ). Dionysis looked s little teary. I think I had grown on him over the years. But now I've "betrayed them all". Hephaestus was fiddling with some metal, his beard burning. Leo told me that that's how he hides his emotions sometimes. I'm not exactly sure what Hephaestus was feeling. Hermes was sitting on his throne, openly crying. I was the son he lost in Luke; as was as much his son as Poseidon's before this. The messenger god must think I'm another Luke, betraying my family.

But it I didn't do it. If only someone would listen to me.

But they wouldn't. They're all stupid. And they're all going to pay. I'll make them pay.

"Fine!" I roared, pivoting in a circle to face every Olympian. Hestia was watching sadly from the hearth. "Fine! Believe what you want, fools! That's what you are! Foolish children following an even more foolish leader! You let him drive you into a ditch! You had a chance to believe me, but you blew it! I'm not a spy! I didn't kill Annabeth Chase! Send me to Tartarus anyways! I just saved your sorry asses twice! Not once! Twice!"

Zeus glared at me. "Foolish mortal. You dare insult me?! Say your final words, for after this you are sent to Tartarus, shall never be released!"

I scowled at the King of the Gods. "Mark my words, Olympians! Tartarus itself will not be able to hold me forever! I will escape, and when I do, you'll wish you weren't foolish enough to side with Zeus! I'll get my revenge for this injustice! _Mark my words_!"

Poseidon glared at me. "You'll never get out, demigod."

That was the last straw. I could almost handle the scowls, disappointment, and hatred that everyone has been giving me, but to hear my father say those words...

It was the straw that broke the camel's back. But the camel owner wouldn't be able to see behind him when the camel kicked the man's back and broke it.

In front of my feet, a chasm opened up. I could only assume it led to Tartarus, but I doubt the overbearing darkness and screams of pain oozing from the crack would lead me to a nice Caribbean vacation. Zeus snapped his fingers, still glaring at me from his throne. Immediately, my hands and feet were bound in the thickest celestial bronze chains I had ever seen. I'd never be able to break out of them. They didn't even have a lock that I could try to pick.

"Who would like the honor of disposing of the demigod traitor and murderer?" Zeus asked, briefly taking his eyes off me to scan the rest of the council.

Only three people raised their hands. Ares was one, raising the sharpened battle axe with a sadistic smile on his face. (Right, and they say _I'm_ the killer.) Athena was another, her gray eyes burning with pure hatred as she stared at me. And the first person to get their hand in the air, raising it before Zeus even finished the question, was the man that used to be my father. Poseidon.

"Poseidon, you brought the demigod into the world. You have permission to ratify your mistake and dispose of him. The earth will no longer be plagued by his existance," said Zeus.

"Thank you." Poseidon got up from his throne and walked towards me. I glared at him as he approached. The sea God stood behind me, waiting for the orders to push me into Tartarus. I used the moment to my advantage.

"You monster! I thought I could trust you! How can you not believe me? My fatal flaw was loyalty!" I exclaimed just loud enough for Poseidon to hear.

"Loyalty for our enemies, _traitor_ ," he spat.

"Loyalty to Olympus," I corrected harshly. But the damage was done. The cracks in my heart widened, causing hatred and anger to spew from the depths of my heart into my very soul, contaminating my spirit and body with their toxic wastes.

"You'll rue the day you turned your back on me, Poseidon. I curse all your future demigod children to have a true hero's tragedy! Be them Roman or Greek! Some of them may even keep me company in my new home!" I shouted this out, not caring if anyone else heard, before I started laughed. Every immortal in the throne room looked at me as if I was insane. I think I was.

I loved it.

"He's mad," Dionysis announced in disbelief, which made everyone else believe it (as it _was_ coming from the god of insanity and madness). I just kept laughing, enjoying myself as much as possible before I was pushed into Tartarus for the rest of eternity.

Faintly, I heard Zeus give his brother the order to push me into the chasm. Without hesitation, Poseidon shoved me face-first into Tartarus, the worst place known to mortals and immortals alike. A split second before I tipped over the edge, Poseidon whispered to me, "I disown you as my son. You're nothing to me, except my enemy." All the power left me. It felt horrible, like I was suddenly being crushed by a two ton truck. And still I kept laughing.

In fact, the entire time I was falling into Tartarus, I only stopped my hysterics once. That was to shout to the Olympians before they left my sight, "I'll be back!" My ominous promise echoed along the tunnel to Tartarus that I was in, as well as in the Olympian throne room. The threat was accompanied only by more hysterical laughter.

It didn't really matter that I had been disowned by the man that used to be my father. It didn't really matter that they had banished me to Tartarus, bound in chains impossible to break out of. It didnt really matter that they had accused me of being a traitor and of being a murderer.

Because I would be back. And then they'd all pay.

I swear it on the River Styx.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys! First off, thanks so much for all the reviews on chapter one! XD I got way more than I was expecting, which is awesome. This is only chapter two, but I can easily say that you guys rock. I'm gonna try to keep this short and sweet.**

 **In case you didn't see, I update every four days to get longer chapters for you guys. I changed it from my last story. Sorry! If people like the two days better, I can go back to that. I thought four would give you guys longer chapters without waiting _too_ long. Also, if I give you a cliffhanger, it'll make it so much sweeter. :) **

**Other answers to questions:**

 **Yes, this is a Chaos story. I'll let you decided for yourself (for now) if Percy is really insane. ;) Id love to answer Percabeth 101's many questions on Hermes and Artemis, but where's the fun in that? :) Why show you all my cards this early in the game? Don't worry; you'll get answers eventually. ;) Also, I happen to actually like Annabeth. :) I ship Percabeth, but there's some occasions when Percabeth just... Doesn't work. So now Annabeth is dead. I sunk my own ship.**

 **Ok, disclaimer! I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter as much as you enjoyed the last one (hopefully)!**

 **Percy's POV ( _italic_ means recap at beginning) **

_Because I would be back. And then they'd all pay._

 _I swear it on the River Styx._

After falling for an uncertain amount of time that could've been hours, days, months, or anywhere in between, I hit rock bottom. Literally.

I landed between huge hole in the ground (I wasn't too keen on finding out what was in there) and a river flowing with black water. The River Styx. The river of hate.

How fitting.

I had just struggled to my feet (still bound in chains, here) when a hideous monster I had never seen before popped out of the hole in the ground. (After fighting two wars and taking a previous trip to Tartarus, you'd think I'd have seen it all.) It had the head of a hairless cat and the body of a huge spider. It scanned the area quickly, twisting its head a full 360 degree circle. I hadn't even been in Tartarus for five minutes, yet I was already worried id lose my lunch.

The creature did a full perimeter check before turning its eyes back to me. I was slightly disturbed to see that it's eyes were entirely black. It was like looking into a black hole.

Seeing I was alone, the cat-spider hybrid scuttled over to me. I expected it to kill me painfully with it's spider legs, then chew on my bones with it's cat head. And then my spirit would go to the Fields of Punishment, or it'd be stuck in Tartarus forever with my murderer, the hybrid creature. Happy thoughts.

Instead of my slightly-deranged prediction, the creature didn't kill me. Not sure to be thankful for that or not. Honestly, I'd just be going from one hell to another. Only difference would be if I was still living or not.

The creature stood in front of me, sniffing the air. Then it opened its mouth, showing rows of hundreds tiny needle-like teeth, before it spoke. "Perseus Jackson, exiled son of Poseidon."

Exiled? I loudly laughed at that. I didn't know they exiled me as well! Disowned, banished to Tartarus, _and_ exiled from Olympus, all in one day! I bet everyone is talking about me. Unless Zeus forbid everyone from talking about me. That wouldn't surprise me if he had.

The monster continued, it's voice so deep and low-pitched that I couldn't help from laughing out loud. Although, it's not like I was trying very hard to keep my humor to myself. "My master will be every happy with the prize I am about to bring back for him." Bile rose up into my mouth as the wrinkly face morphed into a demonic smile.

Then I took in the meaning of its words. "I'm not going anywhere with you, _freak_ ," I spat. "I'd rather die in Tartarus than go with you."

The demonic smile widened. "That can be arranged." The monster turned around, showing me its backside. From the hairy black mass that was its butt, a giant scorpion tail unfurled. Green poison dripped from it's stinger, poised and ready to attack.

The monster turned back around. "Ready to rethink my offer?"

I shook my head defiantly. "Never."

It smirked. "Good thing I wasn't offering."

In one swift movement, the creature hooked my chains on it's scorpion stinger. It pulled me off my feet and dragged me into the hole it had appeared from.

"Hey!" I tried to shout, but it came out more like a wordless scream. I was yanked down a flight of steps before I had time to make it last the "h" sound in "hey".

Groaning, i landed at the bottom of the many steps in a heap. My entire body hurt. I didn't think I could move anything without it snapping.

The monster had a different idea. "Get up demigod," it growled. "You may have been strong enough to survive being a spy for Kronos and his mother Gaea, but if you don't hurry to meet your new lord, you'll wish I had killed you when I had the chance."

I stood shakily, my knees wobbling dangerously. I hoped we didn't have to walked much farther; I don't think id be able to make it.

The creature led me down hallways and up small flights of stairs nothing like the one I tumbled down. Finally, we stopped in front of an ordinary-looking door.

"This is your stop, demigod. My master will be in to see you." The creature opened the door and shoved me in before I had time to get out a single word. Then it locked the door behind me.

The first thing I noticed was that I was alone. Then I noticed that the walls were covered in pictures. Of monsters. Hellhounds.

They covered every surface, different sizes, different poses, and different victims. All were black, staring at me with their blood red eyes. I sank to the floor as flashes of visions bombarded me.

A black hellhound hiding in the bushes. Beautiful blonde hair shining in the moonlight. The black trying to cover the blonde. A bronze sword. Golden dust. The blonde hair was dyed red. There was a puddle on the ground. The water gleamed red in the moonlight.

I gasped and squeezed my eyes shut, trying to keep the visions at bay. I didn't realize I was sitting on the floor. When had that happened?

As I tried to recover from the onslaught of flashbacks, the single door in my cell burst open. An imposing figure hidden by shadows stood in the doorway. In a deep, masculine voice, he said, "Hello Perseus Jackson."


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello! OH my gods, thanks so so so much for all the reviews last chapter! You guys are totally the best! So, there weren't really any question that I can answer without giving away free spoilers, and i would never ruin the chance for a good cliffhanger. ;) Here's one thing I can say: sorry for making the momsters so creepy. (Not really.) I also have arachnophobia. And, no offense to anyone, I think hairless cats are a little freaky. And scorpions are also freaky and terrifying. So I made a beautiful monster for you guys! :) If they weren't creepy, they wouldn't be called monsters. ;) Anyways, I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **PS: I got** **Trials Of Apollo: Hidden Oracle! I won't spoil it, but i have to say that it's super awesome so far. :) **

**Percy's POV (warning: mild swears throughout chapter)**

 _As I tried to recover from the onslaught of flashbacks, the single door in my cell burst open. An imposing figure hidden by shadows stood in the doorway. In a deep, masculine voice, he said, "Hello Perseus Jackson."_

I stared at the man in the doorway. "Well hello to you too, jackass."

"That's no way to welcome your host, Jackson. I'm kind enough to let you stay here during your time in Tartarus."

I snorted. "Yeah right. No doubt Hades is making you watch me, _Bob_."

The Titan of the West frowned at me. "I've started going by Iapetus again, actually. And Hades was just told by Zeus to make sure someone kept an eye on the newest prisoner of Tartarus. He simply happened to know that I have a holding place for some of the tougher inhabitants of the pit."

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, right. I suppose the decor was just like this then?" I gestured around the room at the pictures of hellhounds, all vicious beasts with glowing red eyes.

Iapetus looked around a bit. "I admit, I did just have this room redone. Doesnt it look nice? I'm very proud of the art work. I must give my artist a raise."

"That's all fine and dandy. I'd love to give my compliments to your artist myself. Here, why dont you let me go deliver your praise as well? That way everyone is happy."

He laughed. "Nice try, Jackson. But you're not leaving this cell. I had to call in a lot of favors to make sure we got you here. We're not letting you go that easily."

I rolled my eyes in frustration. "Great. Can I at least get a change of scenery? These four walls are going to get really dull, really soon. And might I mention that there isn't even a toilet in here?"

"Nothing gets past you, Jackson, does it?"

"So I am getting a toilet?"

The Titan laughed at me. "You'll get your toilet eventually. I'm thinking more of a Porta-Potty type of thing. What do you think?"

"Those things are nasty. I'd rather go on the floor."

The Titan nodded. "Perfect. That's what I thought you'd say. Your Porta-Potty will be here soon. I just need my servants to go fetch one."

Servants? What could he possibly be... Oh. The mutant cat-spider-scorpion freaks. That's what he's talking about.

"You mean your freaks?" I replied, no doubt sounding like a dick. I couldn't care less though.

Iapetus frowned at me. "They're my pets and my servants. I created them myself, you know."

"Really? I'd never know. They look just as freakishly messed up as everything else down here in Tartarus."

Iapetus, the incredibly powerful Titan (of painful deaths), glared down at me, the puny, disowned demigod bound in chains (that wasn't even sure if he still had powers). "Don't disrespect me or my creations, _mortal_. I am the lord of these parts, and it would be in your best interest to treat me as such. I could kill you twenty different ways with a child's teddy bear. Let's not mention all the ways I could right now, seeing as how I have an endless army of "freaks" at my disposal. Most would be more than happy to tear you apart. They're more of a 'kill first, ask questions later' kind of group."

Surprisingly, the speech didn't terrify me. I didn't have to fight the urge to pee my pants from fright. If anything, I almost peed my pants from laughing.

I broke out in hysterical laughter not unlike the laughter I had on my journey to this lovely vacation spot, Tartarus. "You don't scare me! I've been here before and gotten out. I've seen things I shouldn't have to see, even got punished for some of the worst things that have happened to me! You don't scare me! You'll have to write a more fear-inspiring speech!"

Iapetus looked at me in outrage. "How dare you show this much disrespect to me?! I'll teach you your place demigod! You're never getting out of this pit!" He thrned on his heel and stomped out of my cell, slamming the door in the process. I kept laughing.

Suddenly, I started to feel very tired. It was hard moving my mouth up and down to talk. It was hard to even sit up. My eyelids were getting heavy. Before I even knew what was going on, I fell over on the floor, fast asleep.

I was hoping for the first nightmare-less sleep in the last couple weeks. Of course, in was sleeping somewhere in Tartarus, the pit of evil. I shouldn't have even hoped for good dreams.

The nightmare I did have was one of the worst ones I had ever had in my life. And trust me, that's really saying something. The terodible part was that I had already lived through the nightmare physically.

 _I was walking down a path in a park. The moon was mostly covered by the clouds, but it's light occasionally shone through. Annabeth was walking to my left, wearing a white shirt with jean shorts. She was laughing at something I had said._

 _"You're such a seaweed brain!" She exclaimed, lightly punching my shoulder. I smiled sheepishly and put an arm around her._

 _"Yeah, but I'm your seaweed brain." We stopped walking and both turned to face each other._

 _"Annabeth," I whispered, leaning closer to her._

 _"Percy," she breathed softly, leaning up towards me._

 _"Annabeth, I lo-"_

 _The moon had disappeared behind the clouds, covering the park in darkness. An eery red glow came from the bushes behind me, but I didn't know that. I wasn't conscious of anything except the girl I loved, until she roughly shoved me aside during my proclamation of my love._

 _I stood, shocked and horrified, as a pitch black hellhound pounced and started to attack Annabeth. Her dagger was lying on the ground, too far for her to reach. I remained frozen until a blood curdling scream broke me from my terror._

 _Annabeth was lying in the path, the hellhound mauling her. I quickly drew Riptide and slashed the monster to dust while it was distracted. The monster disappeared, blown away, leaving a bloodied Annabeth behind. The moon chose that moment to come out of hiding from it's position behind the clouds._

 _Annabeth looked like a bloodied corpse. I dropped to my knees in the pool of her blood on the ground and crawled closer to her. Riptide lay on the ground next to me. Gently, I picked up Annabeth's head and cradled it in my lap._

 _"Percy," Annabeth murmured. I gasped; how was she still alive?_

 _"Annabeth?"_

 _"Yeah..." Blood was trickling out of the corner of her mouth. I wiped some of it away with my thumb. "I need you to do something for me."_

 _"What? I'll do anything for you, Annabeth," I answered desperately._

 _"I need you to kill me."_

 _"What? No Annabeth, I can call Apollo and he'll-"_

 _She gently laid her pale hand on top of my tan one. "No Percy," she said, smiling sadly. "Apollo can't help me. I'm going to die." She started coughing, her whole body shaking, causing more blood to spill past her lips to accent the point. "It hurts so badly Seawed Brain. Please, I can't take it."_

 _I blinked back tears, but nodded my head. My hand found Riptide, already drenched in Annabeth's blood from the pool it had been sitting in. I raised the sword above her chest, right above her heart. "I'm sorry Annabeth. You never got to wear your white dress."_

 _She smiled sadly up at me, the moonlight making her pale face seem to glow. She looked like an angel. Or a ghost. "I love you Seaweed Brain. I'll see you in Elysium and then we can have our wedding."_

 _I nodded, although I didn't think we would have our wedding after all. Luke was in Elysium. There might be a wedding, but I doubt it would be mine. Nevertheless, I lifted the sword higher. "I love you too, my Wise Girl." Then I let the sword fall._


	4. Chapter 4

**Hi guys! Thanks so so much for all the reviews last chapter! Now, to answer a few questions: Nixi, I don't know yet. Sorry. also, if someone got Annabeth and asked her, that'd get rid of the point of this story. :P :) TheUltimateDemigod07, yeah Bob/Iapetus regained his memories. Sorry if that wasn't as clear to you guys as it was to me. Obviously it was clear to me; I'm the one writing it. ;) Greekgodsrox, you had several questions. :) So let's do it like this- Q: WHY?! (Asking about me literally killing Percabeth) A: I felt like it. And it fits the story. I sunk your ship. XD Q: WHAT?! You have the latest Apollo? A: Yes. I said that in my AN last chapter. ;) Q: Did you get it from Barnes and Noble? A: No, but they do have a display of them, at least at the stores near me. I got tickets for the Rick Riordan talk (or whatever you want to call it) the day it came out, and the tickets both came with signed copies of the book. I didn't end up going because I had stuff. But I got the books from the Harvard book store; just picked them up. Anyways, I own nothing! But enough about me. :) I (more talk about me) hope that you guys (that's better) enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _I nodded, although I didn't think we would have our wedding after all. Luke was in Elysium. There might be a wedding, but I doubt it would be mine. Nevertheless, I lifted the sword higher. "I love you too, my Wise Girl." Then I let the sword fall._

I woke up screaming. My body was drenched in sweat, and the chains had rubbed against my thrashing body while I slept, leaving my arms and legs covered in bloody rashes. I felt myself trembling like a leaf in the wind. I could feel the tears tracks drying on my cheeks. No doubt about it; that had been one of my worst nightmares ever.

Why would they do this to me though? I didn't kill her for the sake of killing her. If it makes any sense (which improbably doesn't, knowing it's coming from me), I killed her to save her. And I wasn't a traitor. I helped them defeat Gaea; how could i betray them? Anyone that's ever tried to play cards with me knows that I can't keep a poker face, let alone a whole act up. Id never be able to do it without tripping myself up.

But it doesn't matter. They chose not to believe me. They believed that false king Zeus instead of their Hero of Olympus. They'll come to know that it was a fatal mistake.

O.o.O. Line Break O.o.O

The door to my cell creaked open. "Food," grunted the usual grumpy monster. He deposited my tray of mud (or what closely resembles mud in appearance and flavor) on the floor in front of me. I tried to put on an air of arrogance as the monster remained in sight, before pouncing on the "food" as soon as I was alone.

This routine has been going on for years. The same grumpy monster (who _really_ needs a coffee) comes in, throws my food on the grounds, then leaves just as quickly. Occasionally, some of my old friends come to pay me a visit. The Minotaur, for example, is frequently visiting me. I wish I could say we just sat and drank tea with biscuits. I also wish I could say that I defended myself well. I can't even say that I could hold a sword, though. I can say that because of my visiting friends, my body is now an artistic arrangement of lines of varying shades of red and pink.

Sometimes I imagine what the people up above would think of me now. Just seeing me, they'd probably need some new pants. I doubt most of them would even recognize me.

After I finished my "food", I sat on the floor and stared up at the ceiling. That was the only place that dis have pictures of the creatures that killed the love of my life. My fiancé. My Annabeth. My Wise Girl.

The door banged open. I didn't even look to see who it was. Nor did I say anything. My mind assured me it was just another of my "friends" coming to visit. My body vetoed the thought, reminding me of the throbbing ax wound on my arm from yesterday's visit with the Minotaur.

I heard the scratching of a pen on paper. Immediately, I knew who it was. Still not looking, I spoke. "They're still sending you down here to observe the vermin like me?"

In a voice that wasn't as deep as a man's but not as high pitched as a child, my visitor responded simply, "Yes."

I looked at my visitor for the first time since he walked in. He appeared to be only in his teens, about seventeen or eighteen. His shaggy black hair fell in his eyes, but I could still see the dark orbs through the locks. His athletic frame was hidden underneath a long black trench coat, no doubt also hiding a sword (along with other weapons) under it.

I didn't hold it against him for agreeing with me when I said I was vermin. The Olympians must have brainwashed him into believing I'm a killer. And a traitor. Still, we're cousins. You'd think he'd remember that loyalty is my fatal flaw.

"Immortality treats you well, Nico."

"Id say the same for you, but that would be a complete lie." Nico stared at me with a blank face. I was just a task for him. The thought got my blood boiling. What happened to my loyal cousin?

I knew I mUst look terrible though. Being chained to a wall for, what?, twenty years almost will do that to a person. I had some dried blood on the floor around me from my previous visitors, and some of it was all on my body. I had crisscrossing lines zigzagging all over my skin, including a few on my face. In general, I figured I look like a living zombie.

"What's the news up above?" I asked, hoping for at least one semi-civil conversation with my cousin. Or should I say my ex-cousin?

Nico rolled his eyes, like he does every time I've asked him on his trips to make sure all the criminals are still on lockdown. Still, he told me anyways. "Your mother and stepfather died."

A knife to the chest. "What?" I sputtered. "How?"

"Car accident," Nico answered nonchalantly. "The other driver was a camper that drank too much of Mr. D's wine at a party."

My sadness was replaced with rage. I started pulling at my chains, wanting to go kill the demigod that killed my mother and my only real father.

"Where'd they go?" I asked. I figured my mom would get Elysium, but where would Paul go?

"The Fields of Asphodel."

My voice was barely above a whisper, but that didn't make me any less menacing. "What?"


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey guys! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! :) Now, this is the part where id reply to questions/comments/concerns, but the website appears to be glitching, so I can't read my reviews yet. I'll read them all when the website is back to normal though! I can see that I got over ten reviews last chapter, which is awesome! I love you guys. :) You're the best. This chapter might be a little short because I had a band concert until midnight. (Just kidding, it was actually only 9:30.) But it was on Monday, a school night, and my teacher mare us have a big math test for Tuesday. :P Anyways, that's my story of woe. :) I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter. :)**

 **Percy's POV**

" _Where'd they go?" I asked. I figured my mom would get Elysium, but where would Paul go?_

 _"The Fields of Asphodel."_

 _My voice was barely above a whisper, but that didn't make me any less menacing. "What?"_

The emo kid shrugged. "Yeah, they were both put in the Fields of Asphodel."

"Why?" I spat out through gritted teeth. I heard the chains that kept me stuck to the wall rattle.

He shrugged again, nonchalantly. It was as if we were discussing the weather outside (like I'd know what they looks like) or the sports game last night (although it could be night right now for all i know). "I didn't bother sticking around for the whole trial. But I think it was because they both contributed to the raising of a murderer of one of Olympus's most powerful heroes and a traitor to one of our most sworn enemies." His tone didn't change. "It also could've been because they refused to renounce you as their son. Even Paul."

He shook his head in astonishment, amazed that they'd rather accept the Fields of Asphodel than renounce a criminal like me. I was also amazed, but for an almost different reason. They believed me. They were the only ones that believed me... They went to Hades, still believing me. They suffered because they believed me. They'll suffer for eternity for believing in me, all because of those arrogant Olympians.

The Olympians will suffer for not believing will anyone that believed them.

I forced my voice to sound nonchalant like Nico's, trying to conceal the rage boiling underneath my skin. "So, how's everything else up top?"

Nico took a moment to reply. "It's peaceful," he said finally. "Jason and Piper just had their second child, a girl. They named her..." Nico trailed off, avoiding my eyes.

"What?" I questioned impatiently, not caring that he didn't want to share.

Nico sighed. "They named her Annabeth," he finished bitterly, staring at me with a cold hatred that I felt in my eyes whenever I thought of the pain the Olympians have caused me.

Nico no doubt thought I was to blame for her death. His father would have it no other way. They brainwashed him and probably all my other friends too.

"Just ask Annabeth's soul! She's living it up in Elysium! Go ask her what happened! She'll tell you I wasn't to blame!" I shouted, causing Nico to flinch at the rage pouring out in my voice.

He paused, then said, "You didn't know?" His dark eyes were wide, but his mouth was pulled into a confused frown.

"What didn't I know?" I asked warily. If he said that she didn't end up in Elysium, or if she didn't remember the times before and during her death, id be heartbroken. The pit wouldn't be ready for the onslaught of emotion I'd pour into it.

"She... Uh..." Nico tried to say.

"What? She what?!" I yelled, furious that he was withholding this information from me. I had a right to know!

Softly, almost whispering, Nico finally told me. "She went for rebirth as soon as she reached Elysium."

All of my worst fears came true at once. She wasn't enjoying her afterlife in Elysium with all our deceased friends. She didn't remember the night she died. She didn't remember me. She didn't remember herself. She might not even be a daughter of Athena anymore.

First, I felt disbelief. That couldn't be true. Nico had to be lying! He had to be. She wouldn't do that.

Then, once I saw the look on his face, I started to believe his words. I felt shock. Why would she do that?

Sadness and its twin, Depression, followed. Why would Annabeth want to leave me forever? Am I really as terrible as they all say? She just couldn't bear to me near me?

Anger took their place. How dare she do this? I lost my reputation and future because I helped her! I deserve an explanation at least!

Unlike my other emotions, the anger didn't dissipate. I didn't want it to dissipate. With the red hot burning sensation it gave me flooding through my veins, making me feel more powerful than I had since my imprisonment, I loved the feeling as much as I thought I had loved _her_. Think of al the damage I could cause with this power, this anger.

I couldn't do anything from this puny cell though.

A pale Nico was standing in front of me, saying something. I couldn't hear his words, however, do to the pounding sound of my blood rushing through my body. It echoed in my ears, like my own personal drum beat.

I couldn't escape my cell due to the celestial bronze chains that connected my arms to the wall. I couldnt destroy the Olympians with the chains still on me. I'd have to break them.

I channeled every ounce of rage in my body into breaking the chains. It fueled me, making me stronger. I pulled as hard as I had ever pulled before.

And the chains snapped off the wall like a rubber ball flying off a paddle.


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey guys! Oh my gods, thanks so so much for all the reviews last chapter! Over 20?! You guys are amazing. Ok, so I can read reviews again now! Time to answer/respond to a few selected reviews!**

 **Omega Alpha Hydra: I hope I did well on my math test too! Although I'm not sure how I did yet. Math tests are the worst kinds of tests. :( I wonder if there's a god of math tests... That'd be a terrible domain. ;)**

 **benpool99: While you did have a good amount of conspiracies, I'm sorry to say that Old Annabeth went for rebirth. Not sure if Percy and New Annabeth will ever meet, but as for now, I don't think they will. Sorry to ruin your conspiracies.**

 **Ok! So that was the stuff I can reply to without giving anything away. ;) No spoilers! :) Anyways, I can't believe I have over 100 reviews on this already! There's only five chapters. :) I love you guys. Really, I do. Anyways, disclaimer! I own nothing but please enjoy this story! :)**

 **Nico's POV (by request! Get excited; first POV change!)**

"She went for rebirth as soon as she reached Elysium."

Percy's scarred face didn't waver, but one look in his eyes told me that the rest of his crumbling sanity had just shattered. His eyes were so green, they looked black. They were so full of pain and anger that they were darker than my eyes.

I knew instantly that he wasn't joking about his ignorance regarding Annabeth. No one told him. How awkward.

Trying to sound sympathetic (and failing), I said, "Uh, I'm sorry Percy. I mean, I know you murdered her and all for your really boss, Gaea, but that doesn't mean you didn't love her. You were just doing what you were supposed to, I guess." The words sounded fake even to me. Percy's face didn't change; he kept blankly staring off into space at a place right above my left shoulder.

I paused, waiting for a reaction of any kind. When I got nothing, I felt my anger rise up in me. I did nothing to stop it.

My face flushed, making my skin look paler than usual due to my anger. Trying to keep my overall composure calm despite my cutting words, I growled, "What's your problem? You betrayed us! You betrayed me. You went behind our backs, telling our secrets to Gaea, then murdered your best friend/fiancé. When I told you that she couldn't stand seeing your face ever again, you went all depressed-teenage-girl on me. I think i deserve an explanation! The truth!"

I almost yelped when Percy's eyes turned to me. Instead of staring somewhere distantly, almost over my shoulder, he was staring me dead in the eyes. His eyes were so dark and full of pain that they almost made me pee my pants. Hey, I said _almost_ ; don't look at me like that.

I didn't move, frozen like a deer in the headlights. Percy didn't move for a moment that seemed to last forever, before he finally moved his gaze elsewhere. I sighed in relief, until I noticed Percy's scarred arms clenching. It was as if he was pulling on something...

I gasped out loud. The chains! He was trying to snap the chains!

I looked at them closely and sighed in relief. They're celestial bronze. He'd never be able to break those. I don't know why I was so worried.

Just as I thought that, the wall behind Percy seemed to explode.

 **Warning! Torture! Warning!**

I sat up on the floor, coughing at the dust flying through the air. What happened? I looked at the wall, seeing a giant hole there, and around the room. I saw countless bits of rock and other forms of debris, but I didn't see the form of another human being. That's when I saw the open door. "He got out," I whispered, shocked. I was about to yell out the alarm (why didn't they come rushing when they heard the explosion?) when a hand grabbed my throat from behind.

Percy twisted me around, my toes barely touching the ground, and brought my face close to him. With a snarl, he growled out, "I could kill you right now." He lofted me up a little higher, causing me to weakly claw at my throat as my vision started to fade.

My vision slowly returned as Percy lowered me just enough so that my feet barely touched the ground. He sighed. "Sadly, I need you. You're going to send a message to our dear friends, the Olympians."

My face was blue, my vision dark around the edges. Still, I managed to choke out a single word. "Never."

Percy raised me up a little higher, just so much that the tips of my toes were barely off the ground. My eyes bulged. "You _will_ take the message to the Olympians if you value your life. If not, I could find many ways to dispose of my useless trash." He lifted me an inch higher from the ground. "I heard that immortals can fade in Tartarus if they're killed just the right way."

Coughing and choking, I feebily clawed at his hands around my neck. Percy lowered me back down so that my feet rested slightly on the ground. "What was that? I couldn't hear you," Percy taunted.

"I'll help," I choked out, trying to get better footing on the ground.

"Good," Percy said, sounding satisfied. He left go of my neck suddenly, causing me to stumble and almost fall to the ground. I wobbled on my feet, extremely dizzy, but I was afraid to sit down. Who knows what he'd do if I tried to sit? "Don't run; I'll find you and kill you before your get far, even if you're shadow traveling," Percy warned.

 **Warning! Torture is Over! Warning!**

I nodded quickly, and the sudden movement caused me to fall on my butt in the rubble. Percy smirked evilly. "Take a seat, why don't you." He sat down across from me as he said it, gently sitting on a large block.

After I regained most of my composure, I asked the psychopath in front of me, "What do you want me to say?"

He smirked in a way that made me regret asking. It almost made me regret not fading. "Here's what I want you to say." He proceeded to list off several things. With each sentence that came from his mouth, the knot of dread in my stomach grew. By the time he was finished, I was paler than a ghost that had just discovered he was a ghost.

"Got it all?" Percy asked after he said the last sentence. Slowly, I nodded my head. This was suicide. Zeus is going to kill me for delivering this. But then again, Percy will kill me for not delivering this. Who's wrath would I rather face...?

I guess im going to die on Olympus today then. It's mind of sad that I fear my former cousin more than the king of the gods.

"You have your message!" Percy barked, shooing me away. "Now go before I decide you _are_ useless!"

I stood quickly and fell into a shadow before Percy could change his mind on letting me go. Gods, if he pulls through with his "promises" (or threats, as they should be referred to as), we're all so screwed.


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey guys! Ok, you all are seriously awesome. I mean, over 15 reviews within the first 24 hours of my chapter being posted?! Thank you so much! You guys rock. :) Anyways, here's the replies to stuff!**

 **To almost everyone: Yes, I know the torture wasn't really torture. I wasn't sure if people considered almost choking someone to death torture.i And yes, this is rated T. But I wanted to be safe anyways, so I gave the warning. Sorry to disappoint you guys with no real torture. :) Don't worry; I** ** _might_** **throw some better torture in later. I didn't want to have people yelling at me for not warning you. (It's happened before.)**

 **To angeloflove214: I might do an Annabeth POV eventually. It doesn't really fit in here, but later i might be able to squeeze one in of her before judgement and while dying.**

 **To Mindcr8fter: I think I'll keep Nico gay (not to sound rude or anything). Especially because I love Solangelo. :) I can't help it; they're so adorable! I think school gets out mid-June. Not sure when exactly. We had so many snow days.**

 **To Greekgodsrox: That was a little thing called revenge. ;) I seriously didn't tell you what he said. :P Don't worry, I'll spill those secrets in this chapter. And yes, I seriously made Percy evil. Haha. :) That also seriously just happened. And I could tell that Annabeth chose rebirth for a reason... Or not. ;) A little thing called revenge. :P Heehee**

 **Anyways, I own nothing! Please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **Nico's POV**

 _I stood quickly and fell into a shadow before Percy could change his mind on letting me go. Gods, if he pulls through with his "promises" (or threats, as they should be referred to as), we're all so screwed._

One second I was standing in the worst part of hell; the next, I was standing before the assembled Olympian council.

"Nico di Angelo!" Zeus boomed, drawing all the attention to me. "What updates do you bring us of your prisoner, Perseus Jackson?"

The eyes of every Olympian and many other gods were glued to me. I bit my lip nervously; how do I obey my commands while not angering Zeus?

I went for the tactic of casually slipping in the bad news with the usual news. "Well, he's pretty well fed, all things considered. He managed to break out today, but he has a working toilet still, so he should consider himself lucky. The monsters guarding him gave him two meals a day, I believe."

Zeus nodded his head with what I said, thankfully not really listening to what I was saying. By the way her eyes widened, I could tell Artemis realized what I said. However, she didn't say anything. I wonder why.

I didnt linger on it too long though; I was just happy my idea worked. I'm a genius!

Zeus was still nodding his head to himself when he suddenly froze. I held my breath. "Wait, did you say he broke out?"

In retrospect, maybe I'm not really a genius... I guess that _wasn't_ a good plan.

Zeus kept looking at me expectantly. Muttering swears under my breath, I nodded slowly.

Lightning flashed inside the throne room. All the other Olympians looked around in alarm, then at me with alarm. Zeus glared at me, then demanded, "Why didn't you stop him?"

I glared back. "I don't know," I sarcastically replied. "Maybe it had something to do with the fact that his hand was around my neck, with him about to choke me to death."

The King of the Gods scoffed. "Gods can't die."

I snorted, rolling my eyes. "You're right. In Tartarus, they can fade if they're in a position where they could 'die'."

"That's impossible!" Zeus exclaimed. The assembled immortals were watching us, their eyes flicking back and forth like a tennis match.

"For once, Zeus, shut up and listen to my son." Everyone's eyes turned to the shadows, where my dad was casually leaning against a tall marble column.

"Hades," Poseidon greeted uncomfortably. "We didn't know you were coming."

My dad shrugged. "I wasn't planning on coming. Until Iapetus came to inform me that his main prisoner escaped. I came to tell you. Until I found my son trying to do the same thing, but with little result." He looked pointedly at Zeus, and to my delight, the mighty king shrank back from his brother's gaze.

"I-it is a far-fetched story. The traitor could not h-have possibly–"

"Well, he did get out," Hades spat. "You can either realize that now or suffer the consequences. I, for one, don't want to be around when he gets here, even if you are prepared."

"Why not?" Athena asked. "You don't have trust in the defenses of Olympus?"

Dad opened his mouth, then stopped. He looked at me awkwardly standing in the middle of the room. "I believe Nico has a couple of my reasons for staying away." He nodded his head encouragingly, and that was all I needed to give me motivation.

I stepped forward. "Right as Percy was about to kill me, he said that he needed me as his messenger. I was only spared so he could get his message delivered to you."

"Well, what's the message, Nicolas?" Dionysis slurred, most likely drunk, from his throne. My dad shot him a warning look, to which the biffed God flinched.

"I believe _Nico_ ," he stressed my name, "was just about to get to that." He nodded to me again, but this time in a way of saying that the floor was returned to me. I smiled a bit, despite the message I was about to tell.

I took a deep breath. "There are several... 'Promises' Percy made. They aren't all very child appropriate. Some are disturbing. Others are very original. If anyone doesn't think they'll be able to hear the threats of a murderer imprisoned in Tartarus for years, then leave now."

A few of the more squeamish immortals stood up and left the room. All the Olympians, however, stayed.

I continued: "Ok. Percy said his threats in a list. I'm going to try to remember his exact wording, but I might have to paraphrase a bit.

"Okay, first. He said that he's going to break out of Tartarus. He already got the first part down: breaking out of his cell. Now he's coming for Olympus.

"He also says that he's going to murder all of you, make you fade, and if there's any remains, he'll cast them into the deepest parts of Tartarus."

I bit my lip before continuing. This is where it gets a little (more than a little) graphic.

Coughing slightly, I said, "He, uh, also has unique statements for each Olympian that 'wronged' him.

"First, Athena. You threatened to push him into the pit, but he was going to be your son-in-law. He was your family. So, for not believing him, he has a couple things to do to you before killing you." She glared at me, but didn't mean to glare at me. She wanted to glare at Percy.

"Would you like to hear your specific tortures?" I addressed the entire council, because each had a unique torture. "I hear that it's dangerous to know the future."


	8. Chapter 8

**Hello guys! Oh my gods, thanks for all the reviews last chapter! I love you guys You're the best. :) Anyways, here we go!**

 **To Nixi/SOP: I liked your chapters! I can't really give you an honest opinion about the song lyrics because I couldn't listen/read to them to a beat. You have to have a good beat. Or else the entire song could be garbage. I'm still thinking about whether or not to include your character. I'm not sure if I'll really have any OCs in this story, other than nameless people.**

 **To picnic990: I'm glad you liked my comedy. :) I like to think I'm pretty good at comedy most of the time I go for it. Wasn't sure if that was a recipe for disaster. :)**

 **to Guest: First, yeah the chapters are kinda short. Sorry about that. Also, I hereby promise you that I will never abandon this story. I might have to take a break (if I go on vacation, or if I have a really busy night that I can't write on, or if I'm super sleep deprived) for about a week (seven days, not seven updates) but I promise I'll try to never miss more than three updates. That's pretty good, actually. I also hate to see good stories be abandoned. It's kinda depressing. So I'm not gonna let this be abandoned. Unless something happens to me. Like, something fatal. Which I hope doesn't happen! And now I'm freaking myself out. Ok. I liked your smiley face with the double chin. :))**

 **Thanks to everyone else for the reviews too! I enjoyed reading each one, but I couldn't respond to all of them. I always read every review, so don't worry; your review(s) have been read. .) It's a cyclops. I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter!**

 **Nico's POV**

" _Would you like to hear your specific tortures?" I addressed the entire council, because each had a unique torture. "I hear that it's dangerous to know the future."_

Athena scoffed. "Of course we want to know, half-blood."

I shrugged. "Your funeral." Then I smirked darkly, causing many Olympians to visibly shudder. "Now whose torture shall we describe first? Any volunteers?"

Apollo raised his hand. Like the foolish god he is, he took his earbuds out just as I was asking for volunteers. I doubt he knows what he volunteered for.

"Are you sure?" I asked Apollo, all traces of my dark smirk gone.

Slightly hesitant, the sun god replied, "Yep."

I took a deep breath. "Lord Apollo. Here's your list of tortures that Percy promises to you.

"First, he said he wants to set all your temples and palaces on fire and force you to watch the flames climb into the sky as your possessions are destroyed. Then he'd, um, have you roll naked in the ashes to both humiliate you and further scatter the remains of your worldly objects.

"Also, he'd force you to crash your sun chariot into the ocean, preventing your godly abilities from saving it from harm.

"Among other things, Percy also says he'll send parachute pants back down to the mortals from Olympus, along with other questionable articles of clothing. Coming from the gods of Olympus, that'd inspire the demigods and mortals to return to the age of parachute pants and other questionable clothing choices."

Apollo's face showed his inner torture clearly on the outside. He gasped a little louder each time I said a different torture or complication to the torture. When I finished the last one, he fell off his throne onto his knees and shouted, "Why? Why would anyone be so cruel to me? It's because I'm so good looking. Why do I have to be so devilishly handsome?"

All the other immortals and I watched in discomfort as Apollo sobbed about parachute pants at the foot of his throne.

When I was finally able to tear my eyes away from the scarring sight, I tried to get the attention of the other Olympians. "Ok! Who wants to to next?"

Every eye darted to the hysterically-crying Apollo. No one volunteered.

I tsked. "Well, you all have to to eventually. Athena did volunteer you all," I said, smirking as everyone turned to glare at the blushing wisdom goddess.

"Who should I pick to go next?" I mused. I described the tortures for Ares, Athena, Zeus, Hera, and Poseidon. Hera had a torture schedule that resembled Apollo's. Athena's schedule was fairly harsh, about equal with that of Ares. Zeus's was worse than Athena's. And Poseidon had the worst torture threat out of all of them. Along with the usual dismembering and vandalism, Percy also promised his former-father a whole list of fun sounding tortures, such as: forcing two gallons of gasoline into his body (while also soaking his skin in it) then lighting a match; gouging out his eyeballs with white-hot, rusty forks; and, my personal favorite, submerging him in a vat of boiling hot sauce after leaving tiny little cuts all over the sea god's body.

When i finished describing the torture, there was dead silence. Everyone was contemplating what I had just said. Then Artemis spoke up.

"I volunteer to know my torture next." Her face was set in cold determination, hard like rock.

 **Hey guys! So sorry for the really short chapter. It was Memorial Day weekend, and I had a couple of late nights, too late for me to do any writing. I only have the time to write when I'm supposed to be asleep at night, but if I spend too much time writing ill be sleep deprived. I'm really sorry for the short chapter. I'll try to make a longer one next update.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hey guys! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! Since last chapter was short, I'm gonna skip the answering of questions to write more story. Just know: it's okay at laugh at Apollo's tortures. Sorry it was a short chapter. The tortures for last chapter mostly came from my own "creative" imagination. ;) I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter!**

 **PS: BlueAvacados, thanks for the dinosaur. :)**

 **PPS: If people have complains, comments, or suggestions about/for my tortures, I'm open to new ideas! I've never really written torture before.**

 **Nico's POV**

 _When i finished describing the torture, there was dead silence. Everyone was contemplating what I had just said. Then Artemis spoke up._

 _"I volunteer to know my torture next." Her face was set in cold determination, hard like rock._

Before I could say anything, Aphrodite raised her perfectly manicured hand to get everyone's attention. "I volunteer to know mine after Arty." She announced this while examining her other hand distractedly, but I could tell she was nervous from the way her hand was shaking.

I chewed my lip and glanced around the room fleetingly. "There, uh, aren't any more tortures."

This got everyone's attention.

Artemis sat up straighter. "Did Perseus forget me? Or does he think too little of me? Does he not think I can handle his promises of torture?" She sounded indignant, as if being threatened was what she had been looking forward to for years and now was being denied it.

Aphrodite stopped examining her nails to stare dead at me. She raised an eyebrow in question, to which I shrugged. The goddess only looked away when she was sure I wasn't hiding anything behind my lack of knowledge.

The other Olympians started shouting. Apollo was arguing with Artemis, asking if she wasn't included in the torture because she had slept with Percy before his banishment. She denied it.

Aphrodite, Ares, and Hephaestus were also arguing with each other. Ares was accusing Aphrdoite of doing the same as Artemis, which Hephaestus was trying to defend his wife. After all, he wasn't given a torture. Yet.

Demeter, Zeus, Hera, and Poseidon were all talking about something. I couldn't tel if it was a toned down argument or just a conversation.

Athena and Dionysis were also talking, but from the way grape vines were sprouting from the marble floor all around the wine god's throne, I had to assume that he was no happy with whatever Athena was saying.

Hermes was sitting in his throne, staring blankly off into space. Fat tears rolled seemingly undetected down his cheeks.

After a few minutes of this, my dad cleared his voice loudly. "Excuse me!" He bellowed, drawing all their attention. "If you'd all stop acting like toddlers, you could know the rest of your fates." He nodded to me, turning over the spotlight.

I thanked him then turned to everyone else. "As I was trying to say, there is a reason why six of you didn't have your tortures described to you."

"Six?" Athena asked. "There was Artemis, Aphrodite, Hephaestus, Demter, and _Dionysis_." She spat out the last name, glaring at the wine god with disgust. From the increased growth of the grape vines on his throne, everyone knew that Dionysis was barely constraining himself. Athena should just be quiet so she doesn't get hurt.

"Who was the sixth?" Apollo asked, still staring Artemis down from their previous argument.

"I was," Hermes choked out from his seat next to Apollo. From the way Apollo jumped, he either forgot about Hermes, didn't know he was crying, or Hermes hasn't spoke. In a while causing Apollo to be surprised.

No one said anything after that. They all just stared at the depressed messenger god. I sighed in exasperation.

"As I was saying," I said loudly to get their attention, "Percy has a reason for not giving six people torture. He thinks that you six deserve a chance. You didn't immediately turn on him like everyone else, so you have been excused of torture for the moment. But if he sees fit, your torture will come."

There was silence. No one knew quite what to say. Finally, I spoke up. I had one last message.

"Percy is coming to Olympus. He broke out of Tartarus, and is on his way here. He's going to want to watch you burn. Once he's defeated you, and he _will_ defeat you, he's going to want to have some words with all of you. Prepare your minds and bodies for that day, because when it comes, you'll get little rest physically and mentally."

Everyone ne stared at me with varying expressions on their faces. Some looked horror-stricken, others determined, or terrified, or disbelieving.

Athena, disbelief echoing in her voice, asked me, "Is that former sea-spawn really that much of a threat?"

All eyes were glued to me. Each and every one of them, a whole variety of unique colors, shown with hope. They wanted me to contradict myself, to say that things weren't as bad as I thought.

"No," I answered the wisdom goddess. Everyone sank back in their chairs in relief. But I wasn't done yet. "He's more of a threat than that."

They were silent, absorbing the news. Apollo spoke up. "What do you mean?"

I sighed. "Do you think he'd stop at destroying the Olympians?"

"Where else would he go?" Apollo asked, frowning deeply in thought.

"He wouldn't attack the mortals, would he?" Hera questioned. I shook my head, opening my mouth to answer, but the words were snatched from my lips.

"He'd go to the camps," whispered Aphrodite. "To our children."

Gasps were heard around the room, along with protests. "He wouldn't dare!" "What about his friends?" "I thought that was his home!"

"Silence!" Zeus thundered. He eyed the ruffled immortals, then me. "How do we stop this?"

Zeus had two sons at the camps, one of which was Jason, a hero of Olympus.

I shook my head slowly. "You can't stop him. You just have to hope that you don't piss him off any more than he already is."


	10. Chapter 10

**Hey guys! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter. :) A lot of you have been asking when we'll see Zoe. What? You didn't know Zoe was going to be in this?! Then you obviously didn't look at the pairing for this story! :P Don't worry though; now you know! Hey, that rhymes! :) Did anyone notice that I just avoided the question? ;) Ok, here's the answer to when you're going to see Zoe and Percy meet: Right now. That's right, Zoe is in this chapter! Yay, get excited! :) I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter.**

 **Percy's POV (right after sending Nico away to Olympus)**

I watched my former cousin shadow travel away. He was a good messenger. Much better than those cat-spider hybrids crawling around this place. Much faster too. Although I'm not sure if he's more fear inspiring... Maybe I should've chopped off one of his arms first. Oh well.

I strode out of my cell and down the hall. All the monsters had heen guarding my cell; I was their only prisoner. All the others were dead. (That may or may not have been my fault.) When the door exploded, it killed the monsters closest. Then their weapons went flying into the monsters behind them. It was a chain reaction.

Past the piles of golden dust, it was easy to leave the prison-like area. Soon I was running through plains of red sand and dodging behind large red boulders. I saw no pursuers, and there didn't seem to be any monsters roaming around. Relaxing slightly, I sat down behind one of the boulders to rest.

That turned out to be both a mistake and a blessing.

I had just set my butt on the ground and had learned my back up against the giant red boulder when something cold bit into the skin of my neck. Startled, I glanced down to see a silver dagger held against my throat, ready to slash the skin. I started to look up at it's owner, before a slightly familiar voice stopped me.

"Don't move," a female slightly to my left hissed coldly. "Make any sudden movement and your head rolls."

I squeaked out an "okay". To think that all that effort of escaping the prison was going to be wasted. I wondered what monster would find my body first.

A rusrling of fabric told me that my soon-to-be-murderer was moving. A second later, a pair of legs (long and shapely legs, mind you) clad in form-fitting black pants appeared in front of me. On her feet, she wore thick leather combat boots. They were also black.

I wondered how she could wear that down here. Hell was known for being burning hot, and those tight black pants and heavy black boots could not be keeping her cool. Then I realized that she was going to kill me any second, so I shouldn't care anyways. I stil found myself caring though.

She leaned down towards me, not far enough so that I could see her face, but far enough so that her long black hair spilled off her back and over her shoulders. It brushed my feet lightly, tickling my sensitive skin. After feeling nothing but torture for years, her soft hair tickling me felt like a new sensation. I was happy knowing that one of the last things I felt would be a woman's soft hair tickling me.

Suddenly, the woman drew back with a gasp. She was silent for a moment, then she whispered, "Perseus?" She pulled the dagger back from my throat slightly so I could speak.

"How do you know my name?" I answered, defensive. I resisted the urge to rub my neck where the cold metal rested.

"What are you doing in Tartarus? I thought you were a hero."

I frowned. "I haven't been called a hero in a long time. I'm sorry, but I don't think I know you. So, if you let me move without driving that dagger through my heart, I'll just be on my merry way through this hell hole. You can go rob someone else."

The dagger dropped to the woman's side, but she still held it ready in her hand. "There's no other humans in Tartarus, even if I wanted to 'rob' someone. I doubt the Minotaur has anything I want."

"You could always steal his Fruit of the Loom gift card. He's always getting underwear from them."

She laughed dryly. "I wouldn't wish seeing that on anyone, not even my worst enemies. Not even Atlas."

The way she singled out the Titan struck me as familiar. First her voice, now this. I must know her, but how?

"Not that I don't love staring at your boots, but I'd really love to move my head. Preferably to look at my soon-to-be-murderer. You won't end my life right now if I move, right?"

The woman made a noise that sounded like a mix between a sob, laugh, and scoff. "Perseus, I might be stranded in Tartarus, but this hell has not made me forget my debt to you. i won't be killing you any time soon, unless of course you do something stupid."

A debt? "You must not know me very well then. Everyone used to call me stupid all the time. My name was usually followed by the words 'is stupid'."

"'Used to'..." She repeated. "What do they call you now?"

I sighed heavily. "Traitorous, conniving, murderous. Just to name a few."

She gasped, and mumbled something to herself. I was getting pretty fed up though.

Frustrated, I said, "I'm just going to move my head, permission or not. Try not to freak out and stab me."

Before she could do anything, I looked up into the face of someone that I had watched die nearly twenty years ago.

Long black hair framed her sculpted face, pale from years of not seeing the sun. Her black onyx eyes stared at me with expressions that I couldn't quite place, and her lips were pressed together in a worried frown. They were a soft shade of pink, like a strawberry that was still trying to ripen in the sun.

"Zoë," I whispered. The woman that was going to kill me was the dead huntress, Zoë Nightshade. One of the many people I mourned for.

She nodded gravely, her soft black hair tickling my toes again. "Yes, Perseus. It is I."

"What are you doing in Tartarus?" I asked weakly, shocked and numb. "I saw Artemis put you in the stars."

Zoë sighed and shook her head. "Zeus grew angry that a mortal— a demi-Titan, no less— was in his skies, higher up than he was. So he cast me down. To Tartarus. He said that any mortal that thinks themselves above the King of Olympus deserves to rot in Tartarus."

"How long ago was this? Approximately?" I asked, my voice barely containing my fave towards Zeus and the rest of the Olympian council, save a few.

"Fifteen years. Roughly."

My blood boiled. Zeus had left her to a torture arguably worse than mine for something a goddess was responsible of, something that wasn't even _wrong_. I had to get more revenge because of this. But I couldn't leave Zoë.

I quickly explained my situation. "The gods wronged me too," I concluded. "We both deserve vengeance. Will you come with me?"

I held out my hand towards her invitingly. For a moment, it seemed like she would reject my offer. Then she clasped my hand tightly and hauled me to my feet.

"Count me in," she answered, grinning.


	11. Chapter 11

**Hello guys! OMG I have to say this first: you guys are seriously awesome. This story has over 21k views from over a dozen different countries world wide and almost 200 reviews! And this is only chapter 11! You guys are the best. :) Seriously. Ok! I have time, so let's check out some reviews!**

 **To picnic990: I should've cleared that up. Percy is immortal. If he's slashed across the neck, he'd return. _If_ he's not in Tartarus. If he's in Tartarus and he's dealt a killing blow, his spirit will remain trapped in Tartarus forever, and his body would die. Should've cleared that up for everyone. Thanks! **

**To Son of Oblivion 7: Hey, glad you like the story! :) Sorry to say, but I don't really write lemons. Feel free to write them yourself though, if you feel like it. Or if you even write lemons. PM me if you do write them.**

 **To Mindcr8fter: I just can't help it. The song goes like this: Percy and Zoe sitting in a tree. K-i-s-s-i-n-g. First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes a baby in a baby carriage. :)**

 **To Guest: Yes, I am doing reviews at the beginnings of the chapters. ;))**

 **To Veylicia: Zoe could sneak up on Percy because he was so tired. He let his guard down slightly, and after being locked up in one room for so many years, being tortured, he was weary and kinda weak. He wasn't the same man that the gods threw into Tartarus in the first place. Good question though.**

 **Ok! That's it. For responses at least. Thanks for all the reviews guys! I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter.**

 **Percy's POV**

 _I held out my hand towards her invitingly. For a moment, it seemed like she would reject my offer. Then she clasped my hand tightly and hauled me to my feet._

 _"Count me in," she answered, grinning._

After that, we walked for hours. Some of it was filled with silence; it wasn't awkward though. Most of the time, however, we were talking. We talked about everything, from my life, to her life, to what we would give to have a warm chocolate chip cookie right then. That last topic made me think of my mom, ruining the good mood I felt with Zoë.

That itself was strange. I knew Zoë for only a few days back in the world outside of hell, and we weren't even that close. It was only after her death that I truly considered us friends, with those words she spoke to me before Artemis put her among the stars. Yet, over twenty years later, here we are, on yet another quest. This one, however, isn't to save the gods. It's to destroy (most of) them.

Next to me, Zoë stopped abruptly. She wasn't moving or looking at me at all. She was staring at something in front of us. I gulped, stopping as well. Following Zoë's eyes, I caught sight of what made the ex-huntress stop. Just as it caught sight of us.

The largest drakon I had ever had the misfortune to see in my life came charging at us. It was easily the height of my mom's entire apartment building (if not taller) and just as long.

Zoë held her silver dagger in front of herself defensively. Against a drakon this huge, she'd never stand a chance with her small dagger. Id probably have to do the heavy lifting. If I distract it, she could get in a good blow, and vise versa.

The beast had finally reached us by the time we had agreed on a plan. It snapped it's jaws at Zoë, sensing she had a weaker weapon. I had a plain bronze sword out, and as the drakon opened it's jaws, i jabbed at its fleshy gums.

The monster roared in pain, blood dripping from it's scaly lips. It's eyes flashed in disbelief, shocked anyone had drawn blood. Within a second, however, the framing glared at me. I didn't see disbelief in its eyes. I only saw pure hatred.

We faced off, the huge drakon against the puny immortal. Not that I had anything that made me immortal other than never dying of diseases. Of course, outside of Tartarus, I'd never die. But in it, I could die just as easily as I could've if I was still mortal. Old age will never kill me there though.

Suddenly, quick as a bullet, the drakon lunged at me. I barely got my sword up in time, but the beast wrenched it away from with with its teeth. I stood, defenseless, in front of the largest monster I've ever seen. I know id never survive another attack.

I prayed it wouldn't go for the kill.

A millisecond later, the drakon lunged towards me once more, going for the kill.

 **Zoë's POV**

I stood watching as Perseus took on the massive drakon all by himself. It was an impressive show of power, second only to most of the Olympian council. Not that they'd ever use actual weapons to kill this beast (except Ares). They'd snap their fingers and kill it. Arrogant fools, the lot of them. Except Milady Artemis. She never wronged me or Perseus.

I was brought back to the fight as the clatter of metal on stone rang out. I looked to my left, seeing a bronze sword bounce across the red stone ground. I looked to my right, and saw Perseus standing before the huge drakon, weaponless. My breath caught in my throat as the monster's legs tensed up. It was going to pounce.

I looked at the sword, then back to the fight. I had a second to choose. If I picked the sword, Perseus would most likely die, ripped to shreds by drakon teeth. But I'd be able to defend myself. If I ran to help Perseus, I'd probably die, but he'd have enough time to get to his sword and kill the beast.

I sighed, knowing neither choice would be easy.

The drakon growled, a low rumbling noise. I made my choice and started running.

A second later, the drakon pounced. Someone screamed.

 **Hey guys! Sorry it's short. :( I'm so busy with the end of the school year stuff. I'm gonna do one more update (which might also be a little short) before I'm gonna have to miss one chapter update. I'll update again normally, in four days on the 15th of June. Then I won't be able to update until the 23rd of June. Really sorry. I have a school dance that I'm going to (with friends, not a date, curious people. Although one of my friends is a boy... ;D) and several other end of school things. I'll remind you next update too, so you don't have to remember. Thanks, and keep being awesome!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Hey guys! Thanks for the reviews last chapter! :) This story now has over 200 reviews! Congrats to son of hades1 for being the 200th reviewer! Thanks to everyone for helping this story get to over 200 reviews before 12 chapters were even posted! :) I'm low on time because I had a thing in school Tuesday night, but I didn't want to miss updates for longer than necessary so here we go! It might be a little short— I apologize in advance. No review responses today. Sorry! I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter!**

 **Remember, I'll update again on the 23rd. Not before (probably), and not after (hopefully). If it's past the 23rd and I haven't updated, I'll post an AN explaining why. That probably won't happen though. See you in summer! (Or winter, depending on where you are in the world, I guess.)**

 **Zoë's POV (recap only)**

 _The drakon growled, a low rumbling noise. I made my choice and started running._

 _A second later, the drakon pounced. Someone screamed._

 **Percy's POV (few seconds before Zoë's POV ended)**

I saw the drakon pounce towards me. Accepting the inevitable, I closed my eyes, waiting for the pain.

It never came. Instead, a chilling scream echoed in my ears. My eyes flew open.

Standing in front of me was Zoë. She was trying to shield me from the drakon's claws. But in front of her was the person screaming. **(Plot twist! Did anyone see that?!)**

He looked to be African-American and over six feet tall. He wore a black trench coat with what looked like dust spots all over it. On top of his head sat a black fedora with a white stripe, hiding most of the man's curly black hair. His arms were thrust out towards the drakon, holding up a shield of some type of energy. He was screaming from the effort it took to hold up the massive shield.

Taking advantage of the moment, I sprinted to scoop up my fallen sword, then sprinted back to Zoë. Reaching her, I pulled the ex-huntress behind me, before staring at the back of the man's head.

I think he somehow sensed my unrelenting gaze on his back, for he turned around to meet my stare.

I gasped. The man's eyes were black, like most children of Hades' eyes. However, these eyes had moving spots in them, all different colors, across the iris. Red spots, green, white ones. Blue and orange. Yellow and purple. A message flashed through those eyes, directed at me. _Run._

I obeyed the mysterious man's command. Taking Zoë petite hand in mine, I turned and sprinted away. She stumbled across the red ground, having difficulty matching my speed.

Making a decision that would probably earn me pain later, I slowed my speed. Zoë caught up, running next to me. Yet we weren't far enough from the drakon. So I put an arm around her waist and another near her legs. Then i scooped up her legs, holding her in my arms. I altered her positioning so I was carrying her bridal style. She fidgeted in my arms but I held on tightly.

I wouldn't let her go. I wouldn't let her fall. Not like how I let Annabeth fall.

The scream from the man abruptly stopped, leading me to think that his life was over for defending us. I couldn't hear anything from the drakon, meaning it might've gotten bored and walked away. Or it might've been busy chewing silently on the corpse of the poor man.

I couldn't look back. I had to keep running. Whether it had walked away or was busy eating the man's bones, it might be able to catch up to us. I had to keep running until I was sure it wouldn't be able to get us.

I had been jogging away (to conserve energy) for at least five minutes when Zoë yelped. She was looking over my shoulder, watching our backs. "Something's coming!" she warned.

I cursed under my breath, picking up the pace. "How fast is it going in relation to us?" I asked her.

A moment later, she responded, "It's gaining on us. It's faster than we are."

I swore louder, using a few more colorful terms than I did previously. "We can't let it catch us!" I exclaimed, trying to increase my speed. Unfortunately, I was already sprinting at my top speed. I couldn't go any faster. We'd both die.

Zoë voiced my thoughts, except in a more detailed way. "It's the drakon!" She groaned. "It has to be. It's going to be here soon, and then it's going to pluck us up off the ground and gradually dig it's claws into our skin, killing us slowly. After were dead, it'll peel our human meat off our bones with its teeth, nibbling our mangled corpses. Then it'll use our bones as toothpicks, before sucking the marrow out as a final snack. We'll be nothing more than the drakon's daily meal, which it uses to kill more people and things!" She sighed. "We're both going to die, after so much struggle."

I pulled her away from my body to stare at her downcast face. She wanted to see the moon again before she died. She wanted to get out of here.

She might hate me for this later. But I won't be around to witness her hatred.

Looking the ex-huntress in her beautiful onyx eyes, I said, "We won't both die."

The certainty in my voice made her look up into my dark green eyes. A ghost of a frown cast a shadow over her face. She knew there was no way we'd both be able to escape.

I knew that too. Good thing I wasn't planning on both of us escaping.

"We won't both die," I repeated to her. "Only I will."

Zoë looked shocked for a moment before she opened her mouth to say something, most likely an objection. I didn't want to hear it though. If I did, all my courage would evaporate into the acidic air of Tartarus. Then we'd really both die.

"Smile at the moon for me Zoë," I begged before I took her in my arms and threw her to the side onto the few bushes that weren't made of tiny needle-like branches. She landed safely, if a little winded, stunned into motionlessness.

I stopped running and drew my sword, staring down the cloud of dust that I one contained the drakon. It kept drawing closer and closer...

I was ready to die. To save Zoë's life, I'd do anything.

 **I'll see you guys on the 23rd! ¡Adiós!**


	13. Chapter 13

**Hi guys! Thanks for all the reviews... Several days ago! Took me a minute to remember that I didn't update four days ago. But now I'm back, and everyone is so happy, right? Yay...! ;) I'm messing with you. Ok, so now here's some review responses. I'll try to keep it as short and sweet as possible.**

 **To the-Ali-Valdez: Not saying what happens to Jason. ;) Heehee**

 **To jloup: The gods could've just read Percy's mind. But where's the fun in that? Besides, what if one of the gods is secretly against Olympus?! Dun dun dun!**

 **Ok, that concludes the review answering! I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter. :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _I stopped running and drew my sword, staring down the cloud of dust that I one contained the drakon. It kept drawing closer and closer..._

 _I was ready to die. To save Zoë's life, I'd do anything._

The cloud of dust drew closer and closer. I watched it approach, knowing that i probably wouldn't be walking away from this fight alive. This would be the one fight I wouldn't bounce back from. The one fight that I wouldn't be able to tell my friends and family about. Not that I have any family anymore. Or any friends, besides Zoë. She's going to watch me die.

I felt remorse at that, knowing that she'll be alone in Tartarus after this. Trying to push it away, I knew that she twould be better off without me. She'll survive this drakon attack, if it's the last thing I make sure of.

I didn't have time for any more morbid thoughts; the drakon was almost on me. It stopped running when it was me standing there. Our eyes met, dark green on black. I thought I saw specks of color moving across the black eyes, but it must've just been a trick of the light.

The drakon roared, spittle flying from its mouth. In the close range, some of the spit landed across my face, disgusting both Zoë and I. Hopefully she'd have the courtesy to wipe the spittle off my face before disposing of my body. That is, if the drakon doesn't eat my body himself.

I brandished my sword in front of the monster, trying to intimidate the massive beast with my toothpick-sized sword. It growled at me, trying to intimidate _me_ with its teeth the size of mortal monster trucks. One of us was on the brink of peeing his pants. (I'll give you a hint: It was the one that was actually wearing pants.)

Suddenly, the drakon tensed. It pounced at me, but this time I was ready. I had ky sword gripped firmly in hand. I was ready to die.

I thrust my sword towards the indestructible scales on the drakon's chest, knowing I'd barely even leave a scratch on them but wanting to go down fighting anyways. Imagine my surprise when the drakon disappeared.

I kept my sword suspended in midair, shocked by the sudden absence of my enemy. Where'd he go? That shouldn't have killed him. I looked around madly. The only thing left of the drakon was a massive pile of monster dust the size of an average house.

I looked closer. The dust was silver. Wasn't monster dust usually gold...?

Zoë ran up to me. I was still staring unemotionally at the pile of dust, my sword hovering mid-thrust. She looked at me worriedly, her dark eyes crinkling with worry.

"Perseus," she urged, shaking my shoulder lightly. I didn't react. " _Perseus_." Her voice was more forceful this time. She sighed when I still didn't respond. Her small hands trailed down my arms before stopping at my hands. She gently eased my sword away, gripping the heavy hunk of metal tightly. Zoë hefted it up with one hand, the other left by her side.

There was a flash of movement. My head snapped sideways, left cheek stinging. My hands flew up to cradle my face. Zoë's hand floated back down to her side.

"Good, you're responsive now." Zoë smirked, handing over my sword.

I took it gingerly. "You couldn't have just snapped your fingers in front of my face?" I whined.

Rolling her eyes with a smirk on her face, Zoë responded simply: "That wouldn't have been as fun."

I didn't try to humiliate myself further by responding. Instead, my eyes shifted back towards the mountain of silver dust. I thought for sure that monsters usually turned into golden dust. Why was this drakon different? And why was it so easy to defeat?

As i watched, the dust started to be blown away by an invisible fan. That was normal; it happened with most larger monsters, like the Minotaur. The like continued to shrink, soon revealing a black fedora on top of the pile. My stomach clenched; that was the hat of the man that tried to save our lives. He must've gotten eaten by the drakon.

The hat didn't move as the pile decreased. Instead, a mop of curly hair appeared under it. Then a head, neck, moving into the trench coat the man was wearing. Soon all the silver dust was gone, and in it's place stood the man that defended Zoë and I. His eyes were closed.

He looked like a corpse.

Until his his eyes flew open, revealing the black eyes that had urged me to run. The dots of color floated through them, vaguely reminding me of something I knew I had recently seen. But what?

Stiffly, the man nodded his head. "Perseus," he acknowledged.

Zoë stared at me. "You know him?"

"No."

The African-American man chuckled. "Do not worry, immortals. I don't think you would know me."

"That's not very reassuring," I told him.

Zoë huffed and punched my arm. "Well, that's not very polite!" She hissed.

Another laugh. "Do not worry, Ms. Nightshade. I mean you both no harm, no matter what trouble Mr. Jackson's mouth would've gotten him into with the Olympians. I assure you, you won't find a deity more strict and uptight than any Olympian, even if you searched my entire galaxy."

"Your galaxy..." Zoë repeated softly. Suddenly, she gasped. "I know who you are!" She made to bow, but was stopped by the African-American man.

"Do not bow to me. Again, you won't find an immortal that comes close to the strictness of your Olympians and many minor gods." He chuckled. "At least, don't bow until you accept my proposition."

Zoë nodded, straightening. I looked between the two, bewildered.

"Wait, wait, wait." I put up my hands. "What the heck just happened?"

The man chuckled. "I apologize Perseus. I forget sometimes that not all heroes are blessed with a quick mind like your friend Zoë is. I shall introduce myself."

Zoë elbowed me slightly, grinning at the compliment and in anticipation. She knew who this man was. If she was excited to be able to meet him, then I guess I should be too.

"My name," the man announced, "is Chaos, creator of the universe."


	14. Chapter 14

**Hey guys! Sorry this might be a little short. I was at a cookout one night with some friends, then a late movie the next night. I can only write for an hour or two every night, which really isn't a ton of time. For me at least. Anyways, thanks for being so understanding. I'm gonna skip the responses today so I have more time to write the actual story. Sorry again! And just a reminder: Wikipedia isn't always correct. Besides, this is fanfiction. I get the right to be creative. ;) I own nothing (besides my creative rights) but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **Percy's POV**

" _My name," the man announced, "is Chaos, creator of the universe."_

Zoë and the man– Chaos, I guess– stared at me. They expected me to gasp in shock, no doubt, throwing myself down at his feet. Begging him to not incinerate me for my lack of respect.

Instead, I opted for my usual response: "Uh ok."

Two pairs of eyes blinked at me. They stared in disbelief of my stupidity instead of anticipation for my mind being blown. Zoë hid her face in her hands, peeking at me through her fingers. I was hoping to see the creator of the universe face-palm, but all he did was shake his head sadly. Well, we were both disappointed.

"You weren't surprised?" Zoë asked me.

I shrugged.

"You're not amazed?" Chaos asked me, his dark eyes frowning at me despite his otherwise straight face.

I shrugged again. "No, not really."

"Why not?" Zoë almost sounded hurt, as if by not being an idiot, I have offended her.

Again with the shrugs. "I kinda assumed it something like that. Especially when we didn't hear any screams or sounds of the drakon eating something. But what I want to know is why you even did any of this. Why not let us die? Why chase us as a drakon and have me attempt to kill you as a drakon?"

Chaos chewed his lip.

Zoë stared the creator of the universe down. "I'd like to know that too. You scared me really badly. I thought that idiot," she pointed to me, "was about to be eaten by a drakon! Because he had to go and be the damn hero!" She started ranting. "He's the man that made me change my opinion about most of the world's males! And you gave me a heart attack because even if I only knew him for a few days, really, he is one of my best friends and I didn't want to have to watch him die! I was about to leap into battle with this extremely loyal bastard when you let him kill the drakon disguise! And then he freaked me out because he wasn't moving and I thought the drakon had somehow gotten one last shot in and had clawed out his heart or his stomach or something!" She wasn't making much sense to me or Chaos. We exchanged a nervous glance, careful to not let her see. "And then I find out that all this pain was because of you, dumbass! Why? Why'd you do this? What purpose would you have for saving us then trying to kill us but then not trying to kill us?"

Zoë continued to mutter and rant, but I was too mentally exhausted to keep up. I could tell that Chaos was in the same boat as me.

Finally, I got tired of the endless rant. Hoping that she wouldn't bite my head off, I gently laid a hand on Zoë's arm. She froze immediately, as if shocked. I retracted my hand back to my side quickly, mentally counting all my fingers. I let out a small sigh of relief; i still had all five fingers.

"You need to calm down, Zoë," I told her softly but firmly. She nodde slowly, relaxing her tense shoulders slightly. The fire that was burning in her eyes started to cool to a low simmering.

Chaos nodded at me in admiration. I had stopped her rant by physically touching her, and I still had all my body parts. That takes some serious skill.

Then Chaos opened his mouth and almost ruined all my hard work. "Did you call me a dumbass?"

The fire in Zoë's onyx eyes erupted. She started muttering threats and insults under her breath, struggling to remain calm, but her voice grew louder with each passing second. Gulping, I started to back away from the ex-Hunter of Artemis.

Chaos wasnt as smart. He stood there with a confused frown on his face, staring at the mad Hunter like an idiot. (Is that what I used to look like when I was confused? No wonder everyone thought I was a huge idiot.)

Suddenly, there was a knife sticking out of the ground right next to Chaos's leather-clad foot. He yelped (which is a very manly thing to do), jumping up and away from the silver dagger. Zoë had stopped muttering and ranting; instead, she had bent down to pluck the knife out of the red Tartarus sand.

"What was that for?" Chaos shrieked, trying to catch his breath from his rapid dancing– I mean _dodging_. (It's not wise to make fun of the creator of the universe.)

Zoë shrugged. "You still have all your toes."

Chaos glared at her. She glared back. After a moment, Chaos looked away and nodded his head to himself.

"I pretended to be the drakon so I could test Perseus." Chaos looked at Zoë. "I had already tested you, and you passed. Perseus had to be tested so I could propose the offer to two legendary heroes."

"What offer?" Zoë and I asked at the same time.

Chaos bit his lip and looked around suspiciously. "I can't tell you here. Someone might try to listen in."

I nodded my head in understanding. Zoë, however, frowned.

"With all due respect, I think we're going to be fine here. We're in hell. No one is going to listen in. Everyone here is too busy trying to survive on their own to worry about what you have to tell two demigods. Just tell us here and now."

I bit back a gasp. I thought for sure she'd be blasted to smithereens for insulting Chaos not once, but twice. To my surprise, Chaos laughed.

"You have a point, Ms. Nightshade. Here's a compromise: I'll tell you part of it. Theres two things I have to tell each of you. This one goes for both of you."

I held my breath in anticipation. What two things could Chaos, creator of the _universe_ , have to tell me, a lowly demigod-turned-immortal? Next to me, I could tell that Zoë was also beside herself with excitement.

Chaos smiled at us. "Would you two be my champions? I need your help."


	15. Chapter 15

**Hey guys! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! I'm gonna skip right to responses now to keep this short and sweet.**

 **To Nixi: Cool! Send me the chapters that you've done once you can!**

 **To Omega Alpha Hydra: Don't worry; we'll see a lot of Zoë in this! :)**

 **To GamingTroller101: I think I'll regret saying this, but I'm not exactly sure what the Game of War means in relation to this. I used to have an app on my phone called Game of War: Fire Age (or something like that).**

 **Ok, I own nothing! But please enjoy this chapter guys. :)**

 **PS: For future reference, I am a girl! In case the username didn't give it away. ;)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _Chaos smiled at us. "Would you two be my champions? I need your help."_

It took us a minute to absord the request and to respond. Zoë looked like a fish gasping for air, opening and closing her mouth, not quite sure what to say. I responded first.

"What do you need our help for?" I asked suspiciously.

Chaos pursed his lips. "I was hoping you wouldn't ask. I'm afraid you two might not be willing to help me if I tell you."

"Well, I did ask. So it's a little late for that now." I shrugged, trying to convey the message _It's not my fault you're an idiot_. Of course, I'm not Zoë, so I can't say that in front of the creator of rhe universe. I've been told that most immortals feel like smiting me with I say things.

Chaos sighed, as if he'd been hoping I wouldn't say _that_ either. When I didn't back down, he started talking.

"The older Olympians are my great-grandchildren. That'd be Zeus, Poseidon, Hera, and Demeter. The others– minus Aphrodite– are my great-great-grandchildren. I haven't seen them in person in over a millennium, but that doesn't mean I care about them any less than I would if I saw them every day. Well, if they were doing a good job ruling, then I wouldn't care for them any less. But I've heard and seen through my own network of communications that they've been ruining the mortal and magical worlds.

"I can't let that continue. Id like your help to remove most of the Olympians that are ruining the world from power. With my blessing and the training you'll get as my champions, you'll be able to stand toe to toe with Zeus and his Master Bolt. Combine that with the other gift, and you'll probably be able to stand toe to toe with half the council!" Chaps ended his speech with a hopeful grin in my direction and Zoë's direction.

We both contemplated the offer. Again, I spoke first.

"Why didn't you think we'd want to accept your offer after you told us those reasons?"

Chaos looked at Zoë and I with a look of confusion on his face. "Perseus, you fought two wars and countless battles for them. Zoë, you spend over two thousand years serving as Artemis's right hand. Why would you turn your backs on them?"

Zoë and I shared a look. In that one millisecond, I knew we were both on the same page.

"Which Olympians are you planning of getting rid of?" Zoë asked in an almost-innocent voice.

Surprised and slightly taken aback, Chaos took a moment to reply. "Zeus, dedinitely. Probably Ares too. And Hera."

I considered the short list. "Throw in a couple more, of my choice, and you've got yourself a deal."

Chaos looked shocked, but he nodded anyways. "Who?"

I listed them off on my fingers. "You already said Zeus, Athena, and Ares. I want to add Hera. And Poseidon." I scowled after saying the name of my former father, spitting on the ground in disgust. The red sand at my feet turned a darker color, the color of the blood on the grass that night so long ago... I saw her blonde hair spread out in a halo around her pale and lifeless face. The moon that kept disappearing into the clouds. The burning red eyes of the hellhound that took the life of my beautiful fiance, my Wise Girl...

I blinked heavily and shook my head a little to erase the images once I felt a hand on my tense arm. Zoë looked at me, concern evident in her eyes, wondering to herself if I was okay. Probably wondering what the heck was wrong with me.

Chaos stared red at me for a long time after I shook off Zoë's comforting hand. His eyes asked me a silent question, one I didn't want to answer. Nor did I know if I had the answer to it. Instead of pushing his luck, he said, "Okay, I'll add Athena and Poseidon to the list of gods to dispose of." He paused, then hestitantly asked, "Do you mind telling me a reason? That you want to get rid of them?"

I shot a borderline-rude facial expression to the creator of the universe. Quickly, he backtracked.

"You don't have to," he amended. "It's just... I kinda should have something for the records as to why we're randomly getting rid of two Olympians that haven't (yet) destroyed the world. I can always just put that there was no comment or—"

"Its fine," I interrupted. "I'll give you a reason. Even better, I can give you several."

Chaos bit his lip, probably realizing that he should've just written that there was no comment. Zoë looked at me with concern evident in her beautiful onyx eyes, shaking her head slightly, urging me not to give the several reasons. But that'd be like urging a NASCAR driver not to drive their car after being denied the privilege for years. It's just not going to work out the way you want. The NASCAR driver will drive his car and nothing will stop him.

"Who should we start with?" I mused. "Why not Athena. Get to the god I hate the most last.

"Athena is arrogant. She thinks she can do everything, thinks she's right about everything, but she's frequently wrong. She never admits that she's wrong though. She'll kill a mortal/demigod, or throw someone into Tartarus, before she admits she made a mistake.

"She's also a fool. She takes others' words for matters that should be important to her. For example, the night her favorite daughter died." My voice took on a rough, bitter tone. "Athena could no doubt sense that there was a hellhound in the area where her daughter was strolling. I have strong beliefs that even if Athena didn't pay attention to that, then her daughter prayed to her while being viciously mauled by said hellhound." My voice started getting louder as my blood started pumping faster. "Athena should've had the brains to check up on her fatally wounded daughter before her death! She could've just looked down from Olympus and seen that her daughter was dying slowly and painfully! But no! She assumes the worst of the only living witness, casting the man that gave up immortality for her daughter into Tartarus!"

I was panting heavily, my hands clenched into fists so tightly that I worried my nails would draw blood from my palms. The last word I shouted still rang in the air, making everything feel tense and strained. Next to me, Zoë put her hand on my arm. I shook her off once more, smoothing down my hair that had become all messed up in my rage.

I took a deep breath. "I could go on, but I think that will be satisfactory for a reason, right?" Chaos nodded quickly, staring at me with wide eyes. I guess he hadn't expected that explosion. "Now, let me give you some reasons on why Poseidon should be removed permanently from power. And, hopefully, life."

Zoë bit her lip violently with her blindingly white teeth. Chaos even looked a little worried for what was to come. Zoë, however, looked just short of a panic attack. She knew how much I hated the man that I once called my father.

"Out of all his horrible aspects, where should we start?" I wondered aloud. "He has too many flaws to possibly name them all, so let's start with some of the more obvious ones.

"Poseidon is a cheater and a liar, in more ways than one. He cheats his way out of political problems, using his power and status to get more leeway than he deserves. He also lies and cheats in his marriage. He's cheated on his wife Amphitrite countless times, including mortals and immortals in the long list of his lovers. In all actuality, Poseidon didn't even want to marry Amphitrite for love; she was just a beautiful nymph and daughter of Oceanus. He married her for politics and desire. He lied when he said he'd love her forever; he's cheated too many times."

"I didn't know you and your stepmother were so close," Chaos joked, his voice wobbly with an emotion I couldn't quite figure out. It couldn't be fear, could it? By ranting like this, how could I make the creator of the universe fearful?

I chose not to respond to Chaos's teasing sentence. Instead, I sent a quick glare his way and continued my rant.

"The God of the sea is also demanding, wasteful, and careless. He's willing to build underwater castles for women hes hooked up with in a one-night stand, while he could be using those resources to build shelters for sea creatures, or even humans. Aren't all gods supposed to help the humans? Poseidon also demands that sea creatures fight as soldiers in his wars, with no pay or reward. He doesn't even give them precautionary supplies or takes precautionary efforts. Are the creatures trained for war? No. Do they have armor or weapons to defend themselves? No. Yet they go against trained and armed soldiers. For the God of the sea and its inhabitants, Poseidon sure doesn't take good care of it.

"People say that 'ignorance is bliss'. You should ask Poseidon if that's true. He's ignorant enough to be unaware of you asking him though. As soon as he gets in a bad mood, for even the slightest reason, he causes a natural disaster. Stubs his toe? There's a tsunami in Japan. Trips on the stairs walking up to Olympus? Earthquake in California. Bruises his ego? Waters violent enough to sink another Titanic. "

I looked from Zoë to Chaos. They both had varying facial expressions, a mix of concern, slight fear, and confusion.

"Should I continue?"

Zoë shook her head, avoiding my gaze. Chaos, however, was looking right into my eyes, as if paralyzed. He didn't voice his opinion.

"I'll do one more point," I told them calmly. "This'll wrap it up."

Next to me, Zoë tensed, as if she sensed something that I didn't. I ignored her for the moment; I had to finish my analysis.

"Poseidon is a terrible father and person in general." Zoë flinched and shook her head, as if she was expecting this but couldn't believe I had actually said it. "He accused me of murdering my fiancé, and actually pushed me into Tartarus for eternal torture. He didn't bother looking through my memories, which he could've done as my father; I suspect he was actually too busy thinking of the next mortal he was trying to screw. He never stood up for me, didn't even suggest that I might be innocent. That I might've been scarred for life, watching my best friend and lover die, and that throwing me into hell would only make it worse. But no, he didn't care!" I started shouting, my voice rising unconsciously, louder than it had when I was yelling about Athena. "I risked my neck in his name for over six years! I fought in two wars for him! I almost died countless times before I learned I was a demigod because of him! And he repaid me by throwing me into Tartarus! Where's that famous loyalty now?! _He_ _even disowned me_! For crimes I didn't commit! He didn't care that I'm innocent! _He doesn't care about anything!_ "

I didn't realize I was screaming. In fact, I probably would've continued screaming if it hadn't been for the second I noticed Zoë squatting down, shielding her ears, eyes squeezed shut. I paused, about to try to help her, tell her I was calm, that there was nothing to be afraid of, when something exploded off to my right.

I turned to face the flames that I undoubtably caused. Maybe I am something to be afraid of.


	16. Chapter 16

**Hey guys! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter. So, a lot of you caught me on my mistake last chapter with the Athena mix up. I fixed it on Saturday after reading all the reviews. It should be better now. I meant to say Hera instead of Athena the first time. Sorry. I'm on antibiotics, so it's kinda making me a little weird. Right after I take it, that is. And I think i had just taken one of my pills before writing that part. Sorry! I'm gonna skip the reviews, because I just took a pill and who knows how I'll mess that up? So, if I make any other mistakes, please point them out. Just be polite about it. Thanks guys! I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter. :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _I paused, about to try to help her, tell her I was calm, that there was nothing to be afraid of, when something exploded off to my right._

 _I turned to face the flames that I undoubtably caused. Maybe I am something to be afraid of._

The dancing flames off to me right reached higher than the roof of my mom's apartment, higher than that drakon was tall. They were blue on color, contrasting with the red sky and ground.

"Oh my..." Zoë whispered on my left. I turned around to face her. Her face was illuminated by the blue inferno behind me, making her look like a ghost that had come to haunt me. For a second, I forgot that she wasn't actually dead. I thought her ghost really had come back to ask me why I didn't protect her, save her from death.

The fire flared up. Zoë spoke again, and I remembered that she wasn't actually dead; she was alive with me. The fire died back down to it's previous height.

"What is that? Why is it blue?" Zoë asked, staring with slight fear at the fire. When I turned around to look at her, i saw Chaos staring with slight fear at me.

"What? Why are you looking at me like that?" I asked frantically, looking behind me to make sure there wasn't come freaky monster sneaking up on me, or Iapetus lurking with his minions.

"How'd you do that?" Chaos asked me, staring at me like I was a freak.

"Do that?" I gestured to the massive fire. "I didn't do that!"

"Yes, you did!"

I opened my mouth to protest, but a soft voice intervened. "Yes, you did."

I spun around to look at Zoë. Timidly, I asked, "I did?"

I held my breath, hoping I was wrong.

"You did."

All the air left me in a swoosh, leaving me feel like I was sucker punched. "How?"

Zoë couldn't meet my eyes. "As you were yelling about Poseidon," she started gently. I flinched; I had been yelling? "You started to glow. Your skin shone with a blue aura. As you continued, the glow got brighter, until finally, you stopped. But I think that your rage had just kept building up, and..."

Next to her, Chaos mimed an explosion with his hands. The part of me that wasn't still sucker punched wanted to make a sarcastic comment. Unfortunately, that part of me was so small that the sarcastic comment never came to be.

Flatly, Zoë finished her explanation. She gestured to Chaos's fading explosion miming and said, "And that."

I nodded slowly. I caused that explosion. I almost killed all of us. I let my anger get the best of me.

Zoë isn't safe. Not with me around. Hell, even the creator of the universe couldn't stop that!

 _Or wouldn't_ , a small voice in the back of my head said. _Maybe that was meant to happen._

Yeah, I retorted sarcastically. And he wanted me to kill everyone too. Great plan.

The small voice didn't speak up again. I think I scared it away.

I looked at Zoë and tried to meet her eyes, to see what she was thinking about all this. She avoided my gaze.

I scare everyone away.

Chaos clapped his hands together. "Why don't we make camp real quick? I was planning on just flashing us to your training facility, but I think it might be best if we all just cool down after what happened."

Zoë and I both made sounds of agreement, neither of us looking up from the ground.

When I looked up again, Chaos had made three nearly-identical tents appear. Zoë must've seen me look up out of the corner of her eye, because she too started to examine the tents. She immediately found the tent that appeared to be the biggest and claimed at as her own. I picked the one that looked the smallest for myself, giving the creator of the universe the middle sized one.

Before Chaos and I crawled into our tents, he said, "I think we should have someone on watch. Just in case–"

"I'll do it," I interrupted. Chaos stared at me for a long time, as if he was trying to see into my soul. Finally, he nodded.

"We'll switch in an hour. I'll do the next shift." With that, he disappeared into his tent.

I stood outside for a few minutes before my legs got tired. Opting out of sitting on the dusty red ground, I decided to look in my tent for a chair.

The inside of the puke-green tent was larger than I thought it'd be. Chaos must've worked magic on the inside, because I could easily stand up in it. Luckily for me, there was a chair right next to the small entrance.

After sitting outside in the chair for a good ten minutes, I started hearing a voice talking to me.

"Look at what you did!" The demonic voice yelled at me. Obeying it's words, I stared at the fire. It was still burning, just as tall as it was when it was started. Several monsters were silhouetted against the blue flames, gazing in wonder at the inferno. One seemed to think it was an illusion and went rushing into the fire, only to retreat engulfed in blue flames, screaming in agony and rolling on the ground to rid himself of his personal fire. A second later, the screams stopped. All that was left of the unfortunate beast was a scorch mark on the ground and a like of golden dust.

"You think people needed this? You think the monsters wanted a new torture added to their daily life in Tartarus?" The voice asked.

"But they're killers, murders—"

"What about Tyson, your Cyclops half-brother? If he was killed, he'd return here. What about Ella the harpy? She'd return here. Mrs. O'Leary, your hellhound? Blackjack?"

"Okay, I get it!" I snapped, stopping a further lecture.

"Do you? Do you really get it? Because you started that fire, and who knows what other ones, out of rage for Olympians that arent anywhere near here. You had no regard for the innocents."

I was hit by his words, but hid it under a scowl. "What do you want me to do? Apologize?"

The voice changed the subject. "Look at you friends. They don't need you. They'd already be gone from this hell-hole if you didn't hold them back. You just have to ruin everything, don't you?"

I hesitated. "I don't—"

"Yes, you do," the demonic voice snarled. "There are so many times when people would've been better off if you weren't there."

"Name one," I challenged.

"The night Annabeth died. The hellhound was attracted to your scent, not hers. Yet who's the one that was lying, bleeding out, in the grass?"

That was a low blow. I was floundering for a comback, and the demon I was speaking to continued.

"She would've been spared if not for you being there. She would've have even been there if you weren't. The hellhound was meant for you, not Annabeth. She died in your place. You had a chance to save her, and you blew it."

"But..." I tried to come up with a retort, but my mind came up blank.

"Who're you gonna let die next? Chaos already took a _drakon_ for you. That was meant for you, but he saved you. So did Zoë. Are you going to let her die? Trying to save you from a rogue Cyclops or some other foolish monster that the legendary Perseus Jackson should be able to defeat? Are you going to watch as her blood is spilled on the same earth that Annabeth's was spilled on?"

"No. No, I'd die before I'd let that happen," I said, trying to stand up for myself.

"How can you protect her? Your scent is too much. All the monsters are attracted to you, even if you're no longer the son of Poseidon. So how are you going to stop Zoë from ending up like Annabeth?"

The demonic voice was silent as I thought up an answer. He was right. He was right about everything. I couldn't let Zoë die, not like Annabeth. Zoë has to se Artemis again. She has to see the moon and the stars, at least one last time. How do I ensure that my scent doesn't get her killed, like it got Annabeth killed?

Finally, it came to me. "I'll run away," I announced. "To protect them. To protect Zoë."

The demonic voice was silent.


	17. Chapter 17

**Hi guys! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter. Let's go to the comments:**

 **To Nixi: "-_- no comment sorry". Did you not like my chapter? Because all you wrote about in my comments was _your_ story. So... I'm confused. **

**To Greekgodsrox: I'm just so confused about the whole Hera-Athena mess that I made. I'll check out the chapter to see what the hell I was thinking. And I didn't even realize our stories were alike until you pointed it out. But now I totally see it... Sorry for unintentionally doing that!**

 **To Guest (that said "Nooo"): congrats on being reviewer 300!**

 **To The Prince of Awesomeness: You commented on how it was OOC and an overreaction. Like "Chaos fearing Percy's blue glow". But maybe there were other reasons why chaos was afraid...? Don't wanna give too much away, but... He wasn't afraid of Percy. ;)**

 **To ConnorPerson: I'm on antibiotics because I have Lyme disease. :( If I don't take them, I have to go to the hospital, and then my mom will kill me for not taking them and being in the ER... Again. ;)**

 **Anyways, I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _Finally, it came to me. "I'll run away," I announced. "To protect them. To protect Zoë."_

 _The demonic voice was silent._

I ran into my tent to grab a bag full of things I would need to survive in Tartarus by myself. Food, water, blanket, pillow, extra weapons. It all fit in a bottomless bag I found next to the entrance.

Once I was done packing, I hurried out of the tent, hoping my hour wasn't up. I'd never escape if Chaos was on guard already. Instead, I found something much worse. Or should I say someone?

Zoë Nightshade was standing, arms crossed, in front of my tent, glaring at me.

"And where do you think you're going, Perseus?" She growled.

I flinched. "Well, you see, I was, uh... Going to the bathroom?"

"What's with the bag then?"

"... Toilet paper?"

Althoug she didn't say anything verbally, Zoë gave me a look that said _I'm not buying that crap._

I swallowed hard, my throat dry. Running away seemed so easy a moment ago, before Zoë intervened. No one as supposed to get hurt. Now, I'm going to get physically (and maybe emotionally) pounded into the ground with fists.

"I, uh, can explain."

A minute passed.

"Well?" Zoë asked after I hadn't said anything. I opened and closed my mouth like a fish gasping for air, waiting for the words to come tumbling from my mouth. They all seemed to be stuck.

Another minute passed. I decided to just close my mouth. Zoë and I stood there, me looking at the ground and her glaring daggers into my head.

"No, don't speak," she mocked me. Then, in a softer voice, she said, "I know what you're thinking. I don't need your reasons."

I opened my mouth to speak, to defend myself, but she interrupted me.

"Don't tell me 'cause it hurts'."

I closed my mouth. Zoë looked at me with tears at the edges of her eyes, waiting for them to spill over. I tried to keep my gaze on the ground. The ground wasn't a beautiful girl about to burst into tears over me.

For a long moment, neither of us said anything. Then I risked a glance up. Suddenly, words came from my mouth without my consent.

"What you just said, those four sentences," I said softly to get her attention, "that was 'Don't Speak' by Echo, wasn't it?"

She nodded, smiling slightly. It was a watery smile, but a smile nonetheless. I'd take what I could get.

"Where'd you hear that?" I asked. She shrugged, the smile disappearing from her face. Instead, she faced me with watery eyes.

"Why are you trying to leave?" She whispered.

I wanted to joke that she said she didn't need my reasons, but I figured that'd get me beat up. Or that would start the waterworks. And neither one sounded appealing. I eneed up saying, "I'm dangerous. If I'm going to be dangerous, it's better to kill my enemies than my friends."

She choked on a sob, but I think it was supposed to be a laugh. "You're not dangerous, you idiot," she protested, but it was weakly.

I gestured to the still-burning giant wall of fire. "And that's just a lit match, nothing more," I sarcastically replied.

She glared at me with eyes red from trying to suppress her tears. That made it all the more frightening, as if I had pissed off someone at a funeral. Especially if t was a murder, and they didn't know who did it, and it turned out to be the person I had just pissed off. (They probably did it for money.) Anyways...

"You don't know what you're talking about," Zoë tried to say. "You—"

I cut her off. "No, Zoë, _you_ don't know what you're talking about. I'm dangerous. I started that fire because I was mad at gods that can't even hear me! That probably all think I died ten, fifteen years ago! Who knows what else I could do?"

"I—"

"No, Zoë!" I exclaimed, stopping her. "Listen to me! I can't stay here! If I lose it again, I might kill you! I'd rather leave and never be a danger to you again than stay here and kill you be accident!"

She sighed. In a slightly condescending tone, she started to say, "Perseus, if your just—"

Again, I interrupted. "Zoë, listen to me!" I commanded sternly. She closed her mouth and looked me in the eyes. "I can't stay here. Not if I'll hurt you." She opened her mouth to object, but I continued talking. "There isn't anything you can say that will change my mind. I'm leaving." I slung my backpack up on my shoulder, staring into Zoë's eyes one last time. I didn't want to forget them.

"Is there anything I can say that will change your mind?" A deep voice spoke from behind me. I whipped around and stared into the African-American face of Chaos.

"Chaos," I breathed out, shocked he was there. "Why are you here?"

He chuckled. "I heard your 'conversation'. Although it sounded more like you yelling, Percy."

Blushing, I responded to his previous question. "There isn't anything you can say that will make me stay," I said sadly. "I'm dangerous. I don't want to hurt one of you."

Chaos laughed and rolled his eyes. "You can't hurt me. I'm the creator of the universe. You're strong, but I'll take more than a godling to hurt me. No offense."

"B-but your face!" I argued, confused. "You were afraid. Of the fire that I had created. Right?"

"Wrong," Chaos corrected, smiling at me like a regular dad smiles at their confused child.

"But then...?"

"Before the fire, there was a glow around you. I was scared of what that meant. And then when the fire burst to life, I was scared of what _that_ meant too. I was never scared of you, Percy. I know you'd never try to hurt Zoë or me," he explained.

I nodded, still completely confused but refusing to show it. "Then what was it you were afraid of?"

Chaos was silent for a moment. "The glow and the fire meant that two powerful beings stirred in Tartarus and are waiting for us– for you. They could either be our friends, helping us remove the Olympians that we want to be rid of, or they could be our foes, stopping us from our righteous goal."

Again, I nodded, still hopelessly confused. "Okay... But Chaos, who are these two powerful beings?" I set my bag on the ground. I guess I wouldn't be leaving after all.

 **Comment or PM me about who the two beings are! First person to guess at least one gets a prize! And if you guess both, then you get double the prize! Contest is only for members with accounts, sorry. :( Can't PM people without accounts their prizes.**


	18. Chapter 18

**Hey guys! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! Let's go to the reviews:**

 **OwlgirlXD: To create stories, go to the top of your screen. There should be two options, login or sign up. I'm assuming you're on a computer or something. Make an account. Then, after 24 hours, PM me and I'll give you further instructions. To PM me, you can type my username in the search box, click my username, and then click the button that says "PM". It's located right under my username in bold. I hope that helps for now!**

 **Omega Alpha Hydra: Yeah, Lyme disease is god awful. It really does suck. And the medicine I take makes me nauseous if I don't eat enough before I take it. And for breakfast, I'll get nauseous if I eat too much regularly. So, most days, my breakfast ends up in the toilet. But it could be worse. :) Thanks for taking the time to look it up and leave the reviews!**

 **Ok! Thanks for guessing everyone! The prize goes to _I'm not ofreakingkay_ for guessing one of the "powerful beings"! They guessed Aether and Tartarus! Aether was one of the beings! And no one guessed the other one, so you're just gonna have to wait to find out. ;) I own nothing, but please enjoy this chapter. :) **

**Percy's POV**

 _Again, I nodded, still hopelessly confused. "Okay... But Chaos, who are these two powerful beings?" I set my bag on the ground. I guess I wouldn't be leaving after all._

Chaos took a deep breath. "I fear that these two powerful beings are the primordials Aether and Pontus."

Next to me, Zoë gasped. I jumped. When did she get there? Wasn't she behind me?

Shaking the thought off, I spoke up. "Who the heck are they?"

Zoë sighed. "Didn't the daughter of Athena teach you anything?"

I flinched, a spear of sadness and regret shooting though my heart. Zoë noticed and put a hand gently on my arm. Her face had apologies written all over it.

"I'm sorry; I wasn't thinking," she apologized softly. I nodded, trying to swallow the pain.

Chaos cleared his throat, awkwardly looking between Zoë and I. "Anyways..." He coughed before becoming serious. "Aether is the primordial God of light and the upper air. He's extremely powerful, as all the primordials are if you cross them. Pontus is the primordial God of the sea and is father of almost all ocean life, and many of the marine deities."

I nodded slowly, digesting the information. "So this Pontus dude is like a mega Oceanus then, right?"

Chaos hesitated before nodding. My mention of Oceanus must've thrown him off.

"And this Aether dude is like a mega Apollo?" There was no hesitation before the nod.

There was a brief moment of silence. Both Chaos and Zoë looked scared out of their wits, torturing themselves with wondering whether the primordial a were going to help us or not. I, of course, had to break the silence.

"Well, what're we waiting for?"

Zoë blinked. "Excuse me?"

"What are we waiting for?" I repeated. "Let's go hunt down the primordials, convince them to help us, then kill the offending Olympians."

Chaos opened his his mouth to argue, then closed it. "That's not a bad idea."

I grinned, while Zoë looked on in disbelief. "We're going to basically charge the primordials and hope they'll charge with us, not against us?"

Chaos and I nodded as if that made perfect sense. Zoë sighed. "We're screwed, but I'm in. Let's go."

O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O

We trudged through Tartarus for what felt like days. Time became harder to judge as we traveled deeper and deeper into the pit. Thankfully, Chaos made everything easy to travel with, using his magical creator-of-the-universe powers.

We had just stopped to rest for the night (or what we assumed was the night; it could've been mid-afternoon for all we knew) when i heard a strange noise. It sounded almost like waves crashing against the seashore, although we were miles underground. The waves were mixed with what sounded like a crackling fire, both of them complimenting each other in a strange and unusual way. I had been on a beach while sitting around a bonfire, and the noise I was hearing differed from that past one.

I gasped. "Do you guys hear that?"

They stopped all conversation to listen in. After a few seconds, they both shook their heads.

"I don't hear anything other than the faint screams of pain that come with Tartarus," Zoë said, eyeing me in a suspicious-yet-concerned manner.

I frowned. How could they not hear that? It's almost so loud that it's making my ears explode. I tried to cover up my ears to block the sound.

"Seriously guys! Stop fooling around!" I yelled through clenched teeth from the pain of the ever-increasing volume of the noise.

They shared a look. "Percy," Chaos started, "we honestly can't hear anything."

Suddenly, the volume increased dramatically. It was so loud that it forced me to my knees, trying in vain to block my ears with my hands. "It's so loud," I grunted.

Zoë ran over to try to help me, but nothing she did seemed to dull the noise. Splashing my face with water only served to make me wet. Stuffing tissues in my ears only seemed to (slightly) increase the volume of the sound. Slapping me across my face only put in me more pain.

Soon, the sound drowned out every other noise. I could see Zoë and Chaos running around in a frenzy, before the pain behind my eyes caused me to shut them. When a man's voice cut through the wave-fire mix, I thought it was Chaos. I was about to cheer at finally having been saved, until I realized that the man's voice sounded nothing like Chaos's.

"Perseus... Come seek us out. Alone. Do not allow your friends to follow you, or we will choose to wage war against you before you've even left this pit."

The noise dulled further, finally letting me think properly. "You're either Pontus or Aether, aren't you?"

The man laughed. Er, I could hear him laugh at least. "Yes, godling, I am Pontus. Seek out Aether and I alone. You will know the path. Tell no one where you're going. Or else..."

With that, Pontus withdrew from my mind, taking the gods-awful noise with him. I sucked in a breath of air through my mouth, grateful to actually hear myself breathing again. It was only when I started to eat dirt that I realized I was laying on the ground.

I sat up slowly, my body aching for reasons I didn't know. Looking around, I spotted Zoë sitting next to me on the ground, staring into a small fire.

I was about to talk to her when Pontus' words rang in my head. _Do not allow your friends to follow you._ Even if I tried to stop her, Zoë would follow me. Especially if I couldn't say why she couldn't come with me or to where I was going. She'd never forgive me if I ruined her chances to return to the world above.

Then again, she might never forgive me for what I was about to do. At least this way she'd be able to live her dreams.

Silently, I sat up and grabbed my sword that was still sheathed at my waist. The sword slided out of the sheath quietly, barely a hiss as the metals rubbed against each other. I crept up behind the huntress that was still entranced by the dancing flames.

"I'm sorry," I whispered under my breath. That was all it took though. Zoë broke from her trance-like state, whirling around to find my unconscious body, only to discover that j was _very_ conscious.

"Perseus, what—" she tried to say before I hit her on the head with the flat of my blade just hard enough to knock her out. Dropping the sword once her eyes rolled back in her head, I caught a limp Zoë before she could hit the ground. Making sure Chaos wasn't around, I carried her to her tent and zipped up the flap, locking it from the outside. Although I knew it probably wouldn't do much good, I locked Chaos's tent flap from the outside as well.

I ran to my cabin to grab a few essentials for my (hopefully) brief mission. Looking back once more at the tents that contained my friends, I hurried off towards Pontus and Aether.

 **Hey guys! Howre you all doing? Great I hope! So, I'm gonna be on a quick weekend only vacation this weekend with my family! So I'm not gonna be able to update on Sunday. I'll update again on Wednesday, okay? I think it's the 20th. (Of July) Anyways, I'm sorry for not giving more of a warning! It was kinda unexpected. Anyways, keep being awesome you guys! You all rock! :) ❤️**


	19. Chapter 19

**Hey guys! I'm officially off antibiotics now! Yay! As of this morning. ;) Also, I'm gonna skip the reviews for today just cause this chapter was late and j wanna make up for it. I'm so grateful that I got so many before and while I was away. :) Also, I just want to say I'm really sorry for any and all grammatical errors. I'm typing on the screen of an iPod touch, and sometimes my fingers screw up the words. Or sometimes auto correct decides I'm an idiot and tries to fix stuff. Or sometimes I am just an idiot and I screw up stuff without realizing it. So I'm cool if you guys point stuff out for me! As long as you don't flame me. :) I'm not Leo; I'm not fire-proof. Anyways, onto the story! I own nothing but please enjoy this long awaited chapter. :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _I ran to my cabin to grab a few essentials for my (hopefully) brief mission. Looking back once more at the tents that contained my friends, I hurried off towards Pontus and Aether._

I walked through Tartarus for what felt like days but couldn't have been more than two hours. All the while a little voice-like presence in my head kept guiding me onwards. I passed several monsters, all of which ignored me. Not once did they just look at me.

"You're welcome," Pontus said in my head.

"You did that?" I asked.

I could feel his smugness radiating off him, even if I couldn't see him. "Yep. To the monsters, you're more than invisible."

"Cool."

He sighed deeply. "Is that all you can say? 'Cool'?"

I shrugged, not caring if he could see me or not, and changed the subject. Now that I had him, I didn't want to lose him. "Am I almost there? My feet hurt."

Pontus sighed deeply again. "Yes, you're almost there." I heard him mumble something about brats, teenagers, annoying godlings, and headaches. Not sure what any of that had to do with me, but...

The rest of my walk was in near-silence. The only noise came from my feet crunching on the sand, my breath as I panted in exhaustion, and my backpack of food rustling on my back. There was also the occasional chatter of the little directional voice in my head.

Finally, the little voice stopped. I stood there, looking around at the "super secret lair" of two primordials.

It looked just like the rest of Tartarus. Red hazy sky, red gritty sand, red misty horizon, red oozy blood... Wait...

Cautiously, I followed the trail of thick liquid further into Tartarus. It wound around large red rocks, sometimes disappearing.

I reached the victim soon enough. It appeared to be a demigod, but I couldn't be sure. As I drew near to the limp carcass, I could see the boy's ragged breathing and the vicious stab wounds all over his body. It wasn't enough to kill him.

I stood over the body. The boy's eyes were closed, and his skin and hair were so soaked in blood that I couldn't distinguish any other defining characteristics. I bent down to get a closer look at the wounds on his body.

Suddenly a cold, slimy, blood-coated hand grabbed my wrist. I gasped, glancing into the boy's face, and saw one blue eye and one hazel eye staring wildly at me. "Run," the boy breathed, his chest heaving madly up and down as he struggled to keep his soul in his body.

I grabbed his shoulder and shook him gently. "Look at me!" I demanded. "I won't have you dying on me!" His eyes remained locked on mine, his frantic and pained, mine worried and forced-calm. "Talk to me. What's your name?"

His is eyes started to drift shut, so I slapped his cheek. "No sleeping! What's your name, boy?"

"T-Tyler-r," he gasped out, chest heaving more rapidly than before.

I nodded, absently ripping apart my clothes to try to bandage his wounds. I couldn't afford to break eye contact.

"I'm Percy. Do you have a family Tyler?" I asked. Anything to keep him talking. Anything to keep him focused on something other than death.

"S-sis-t-ter," he choked out.

"Older or younger?"

"Y-young-g..."

I clucked my tongue at him. "Then what are you doing dying here in Tartarus?"

He started coughing, choking up blood. "Q-q-quest," he spat out with his bodily fluids.

I screwed up my face. The gods were sending demigods on _quests_ to _Tartarus_? They've all gone insane! Risking their children's lives for...

"What was the quest for, Tyler?"

"Z-Zeus... H-Hera th-threw... M-mor-t-tal l-l-lov-ver..." I could barely understand his words, but somehow I got the message.

"Zeus ordered the quest because Hera threw his mortal lover into Tartarus," I repeated in disbelief. What a complete son of a—

Tyler cut me off of my train of thought with violent hacking. He spewed blood all over himself, the floor, and me. I didn't pay any attention to that. I knew, without being a child of Hades (sadly; Uncle H wouldn't have disowned me), that Tyler's life force was fading.

"Come on Tyler! Think of your sister back up top. She wants to see you again! Don't die on her! Don't die on me," I begged, trying to prolong the inevitable. It didn't work.

A moment later, Tyler's grip on my arm went slack. His blue eye and green eye both glazed over as they stopped seeing the world around them. I gently lifted a hand to close his eyes. As soon as I lifted my hand away, Tyler's body disappeared in a brought flash of light. All the blood on the ground turned into water and was absorbed by the ground. All the blood on me stayed as blood, a reminder that I'm not cracking up.

"What the...?"

"Very good Perseus!" A voice behind me exclaimed. I whirled around to see two men standing there.

The first man was the shorter of the two. He reminded me of Apollo, with his surfer-dude blond hair and blinding smile. He, however, appeared in a black leather biker jacket over an orange shirt and blue jeans. There was a pair of aviators perched on his head, chosing not to hide his bright green eyes.

The other man was a head taller than his companion. Loath to say it, he reminded me of _Poseidon_ with his dark messy hair and seemingly-easygoing manner. Thankfully, that's where the similarities stopped. Instead of my former father's green eyes, this man had blue eyes the same shade as Tyler's. He had a powerful build, like a football player, but most of it was concealed in a navy blue pinstriped suit.

"Who are you?" I asked, but I already knew the answer. "You're Aether and Pontus, aren't you?"

"And Tyler," the blond man— Aether— added with a mischievous grin. Pontus rolled his eyes.

I was confused for a moment before the answer hit me like a bag of bricks. The one green eye and the one blue eye, the same color as the eyes of the primordials... "You, you tricked me!" I shouted, offended, wary, and indignant. "Why'd you do something like that? Making me think a poor kid was dying... You're both—"

Pontus cut me off. "You're not wrong. But hear us out. We had a reason to do that to you, and if you'll let us explain, you'll realize that it was an important reason."

I sighed, mentally thinking up pros and cons. "I guess I'll let you explain. Worst thing that can happen is that you torture me to death, then use my leaked knowledge to find my friends and then murder them to death too."

Aether grinned and flashed me a thumbs up. "Great positive thinking, man!"

Pontus smacked him on the back of the head. "Please excuse this idiot. He's been spending too much time with his wife. It's turning him into an extremely annoying hippie at times. Kind of like a powerful Shaggy Rodgers from that mortal TV show... Oh what was it? Ah, Scooby Doo!"

Aether rolled his eyes. "And you say _I'm_ strange. I'm not the one poisoning my brain cells by watching _mortal TV_." He shuddered in disgust just saying those two words.

Pontus opened his mouth to retaliate before I interrupted. "Uh, hey. Im still here."

They both stared at me for a moment, letting me know that they had forgotten my presence.

Pontus shook his head. "Sorry. Anyways, the reason." He took s deep breath. "We wanted to test you, to see if you were worthy of our help."

I gulped upon hearing that. They had just tested me without my knowing (I didn't even have a number 2 pencil!) to deem if they should either be our allies or foes in a difficult war. If I failed, the war is immediately over. No pressure at all.

I hope you could see that sarcasm.

Neither of them said anything. With the suspense killing me, I asked, "Did I pass the test?"

 **And now the suspense can kill you too. ;)**


	20. Chapter 20

**Hey guys! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! :) I really wanted to respond to reviews, but guess what? On Thursday morning, I scraped up both my hands at the beach! Yay... Right after I get off antibiotics, I have to crank out the band aids. ;) I had my hands heavily bandaged Thursday night so I missed a night of writing, so I'll skip reviews and get straight to the chapter. Sorry guys! I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter. :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _Neither of them said anything. With the suspense killing me, I asked, "Did I pass the test?"_

Aether paused before shaking his head sadly. "Nope. I'm sorry kid. We're not going to have to be your sworn enemies!"

I suddenly felt very nauseous. Had I really failed not only the test, but Zoë and Chaos? They are going to die for this. _I_ am going to die for this. The world will remain in the grasp of those gods-awful Olympians. All our efforts would be in vain. I'd have escaped my prison for nothing.

A tense moment passed. Pontus stared at Aether, while my eyes flickered between the two, hoping one of them would shout "JK", "LOL", or some other acronym that turned my situation positive. Id settle for a "LMAO". If not, I'd drop a "FML".

(For those of you that might have to google that for it to make any sense, JK means just kidding. LOL is laugh out loud. LMAO is laughing my ass off. FML is fuck my life.)

Sadly, another moment passed before either primordial said anything. But when they did, I was ready to strangle both of them, no matter how powerful.

"Dude," Pontus said, "you've had your fun. Now tell the kid the truth before he starts crying and begging us to change our minds. Because as fun as that would be for us and as humiliating for him, I'm tired of snapping my fingers to change pants after people wet themselves." The marine primordial sighed. "Fates know how often that's happened. I have no wish for a repeat."

"Wait a minute—" I tried to protest before Aether responded, cutting me off.

He sighed dramatically. "Do I have to? I enjoy the groveling, them throwing themselves at us, the wetting themselves. That's the fun of it!"

"Hey, I—" I tried before i was cut off again.

"I know!" Pontus acknowledged. "But you're not in charge of cleaning that up because your domains don't have to do with liquids! It gets disgusting after a while."

"Fine," Aether huffed like a dramatic teenager.

"What is going on?" I rushed in a single second before they could speak again. The green eyes and the blue eyes looked at me in annoyance.

"He's not begging!" Pontus exclaimed to Aether in wonder.

"Or groveling," Aether added, surprise lacing his voice.

"And he didn't wet himself!" They finished together, staring at me in awed annoyance.

"That's so disappointing," Aether said, pouting at me.

"What the hell is going on?" I demanded.

Pontus frowned. "Aether lied. You passed the test. We'll be your allies."

Aether at least had the decency to pretend to be sheepish. "Yeah. Sorry man."

I felt my spirits soar. I didn't fail my friends! We might not lose the war! Our efforts wouldn't be in vain!

Then a lava started burning my veins as I stared at the two gods in anger. "Why'd you trick me?" I growled. "You two are such—"

"Woah, hold on there!" Aether said, throwing his hands out in front of himself (as if that would protect him from my coming onslaught of curse words).

"What?" I snarled, the angry fire burning my bones. The same one I felt when...

When I was yelling about Athena and Poseidon...

Oh.

Pontus saw me try to visibly calm down, and gestured for Aether to relax. "You knew what was going on?"

He sounded extremely surprised. "Yeah," I answered. "It's happened before, ski just added 2 and 2."

"He can add?!"

"Aether, shut up," Pontus said, not even looking at Aether. It must've been second-nature for him. The primordial looked at me. "That's happened before?"

I nodded. "Yeah. When I was cursing out my former father."

Pontus frowned. "Did anything else happen? Except that glow that was just around you?"

I bit my lip. "I, er, started an explosion, which then turned into a massive blue fire."

Pontus paled. "Oh. Aether, we have to talk. Kid, go back to your friends. Don't tel them anything about what you learned here. You don't know we're your allies, right?"

I nodded quickly, not wanting to change their minds about being my allies. "Right. For that matter, who are you people? How'd I even get here?"

Aether smirked. "Exactly." Then he snapped his fingers. In a puff of glitter, the two primordials were replaced with Zoë and Chaos. Thankfully, neither of them were looking at me. Instead, they seemed to be consulting a map.

"Where could he have gone?" Zoë murmured. "He was lying right there on that blanket!"

"Maybe something took him," Chaos offered, but it didn't seem to help Zoë's mood.

"It just doesn't make sense!"

They sat in silence for a minute. I lurked behind them, wondering who they were talking about and how to reveal my presence.

"I just don't get it," Zoë whispered to herself under her breath. "First I lose Milady, then I lose Perseus. Must I lose everyone I care about?"

Chaos heard her too. At first, he didn't do anything. He just stared at her out of the corner of his eye. Then he put an arm around her, hugging her close to him. "You haven't lost me," he reminded her.

She sighed, determined to stay gloomy. "Yet," she muttered. Regardless, she melted into the hug.

I frowned at the pair. Something inside me freaked seeing them hug, saying that should've been me hugging her. I should be the one she rests her head on. I need to be the one. But no, that privilege was Chaos's right now. I knocked her out while she was unaware. I don't deserve to comfort her.

I was about to walk away when Zoë turned her head, her chin resting on the shoukder of Chaos. Just the sight of her face made me freeze in place. Until I realized her beautiful eyes were closed.

My mind fought with itself. This was the time to escape! But I wanted to see her lovely black eyes again. What am I thinking? I'm an idiot! I want to be her idiot.

There was one thing both parts of my brain agreed on: where were these thoughts coming from?!

Before I could make up my mind on what to do, those black eyes I had wanted to see flew open. They focused on me immediately, and faster than I could see, Zoë had flown off Chaos's shoulder and into my arms. Technically, I was in her arms. Mine were pinned by my side.

After a ( _long_ ) minute, Zoë pulled away. She looked at my face, tears brimming in her eyes. "Where _were_ you?!" She demanded. "I thought you were eaten by something!"

I bit my lip. "I'm not quite sure... I think something got me, because when I woke up, there was golden dust everywhere." I showed her the blood on my clothes. "See?"

She stared at that, then back to me. Suddenly, her fist connected with my face. Oddly enough, tears were still in her eyes.

"You idiot!" She exclaimed before wrapping me back in a "hug". Over her shoulder, I sent a questioning glance to Chaos, who shrugged, looking highly amused.

At least one of us was.

After I had managed to detach myself from Zoë, I sat on the ground with my two friends. They showed me their map, which was of Tartarus. We were all examining it when Chaos spoke.

"I think I've found where Pontus and Aether are hiding out!"

 **Hey guys! Ok, I have some bad news. For you. Don't worry, I'm not discontinuing this. But I'm going on vacation to WDW in Florida! Until August 5. So, I'm gonna be gone for about two weeks. I'll update again on the 8 of August so I have time to actually write the chapter. I leave midday Tues (July 26). Feel free to PM me while I'm gone if you have more urgent things. I'll check that as soon as I get back August 5! See you guys on the 8! :) Stay awesome while I'm gone. ;)**


	21. Chapter 21

**THey guys! I'm back from my vacation! It was awesome! Except my flight there was delayed by about 20 hours... First it was cancelled at 4:20 in the morning, and then my new flight was a joint one, so it stopped in Philadelphia. Then the plane from philly had something wrong with a generator. WE waited for two and a half hours on the Tarmac for them to fix it, but they couldnt. So they got a new plane, but not a pilot. Then when the pilot finally arrived, the AC was broken and he refused to fly the plane! By then it was already past 10 at night. I got on a third plane (still in philly) that took off at 11:45 at night. I landed in Florida at 2 something in the morning. My original flight (the one cancelled) was supposed to land at 2:30 in the afternoon. But everything worked out in the end! So I'm back! Thanks for all the reviews! Disney was great! :) I own nothing but enjoy this long awaited chapter!**

 **Percy's POV**

" _I think I've found where Pontus and Aether are hiding out!"_

Zoë and I looked at Chaos in shock, but for two different reasons. While she was overjoyed at the prospect, I was dreading it. I just told those two that I'd pretend I didn't know them! I figured it'd be hard, but I thought I'd at least be given some time before having to come up with lies!

"How can you tell?" Zoë asked Chaos, a hint of awe in her voice that sparked an ugly feeling in my gut. I quickly tried to cover it up or get rid of it so I could hear the response, but it refused to disperse. Frustrated with myself, I had to ignore it and continue on.

"I can feel it physically. It's only a slight connection, but since I'm so powerful, they can't hide from me forever. It was only a matter of time," Chaos explained. He pointed to something on the map. I went over to investigate.

It it was a map of Tartarus, which would've been really useful when I was traveling alone to find the primordials. All the areas were labeled, with occasional lists of the usual occupants. Chaos has his finger pointed at one spot that wasn't labeled at all. he moved it to talk to Zoë, so I put my finger where his was.

I could feel power radiating from that spot on the map instantly. It was strange how I could feel their power on a map, but there's probably some long-winded scientific explanation that'd bore me to death.

Zoë stood next to me to examine the map too. She looked at me out of tthe corner of her eye, then at my stubborn finger sticking to the map.

"I can feel the power," I explained. Except it wasnt weak at all. It was practically pulsing under my finger tips, waiting to be unleashed. I could feel it as soon as I touched the map. Maybe compared to Chaos's powers it felt weak, but to me it was powerful.

"Can I try?" Zoë asked me, her fingers hovering over mine. Nodding, I reluctantly moved mine.

She stood there for a moment, eyes closed in concentration. Her fingers in the exact spot mine had been in previously. After a minute, she opened her eyes and looked at me in frustration. "I can't feel anything."

I frowned and tried it myself. The power was still there, pulsing under my finger tips.

"I can still feel it," I told her, confused. "The map is practically vibrating with the power."

She tried again, with no luck. Chaos tried next. "I can still feel it," he said, "but it's very weak. I can barely tell it's there. Only my most acute senses can pick it up."

My two companions frowned at me. "How can you feel it and I can't?" Zoë demanded to know.

"How can you feel it at all?" Chaos added.

I shrank back from their angry scowls. "I don't know! To both of you! I'm as confused as you are!"

For once, that was the truth.

That seemed to calm them down. "Ok," Zoë said, still sounding angry but not pointing it at me. "Now what? Storm the castle?"

Chaos nodded. "We needed to walk before so they weren't aware of my presence, but if I've found them it's only a matter of time before they find me too. It's easier to just flash there now." He held out his dark-skinned hands to Zoë and I. "Hold on! Next stop, Aether and Pontus."

8:8:8:8:8:8:8:8

We popped into existence right where I had seen the fake boy Tyler "die" just hours ago. I bit my tongue at the gruesome memory, not wanting to remember his blood splattering across my clothes, skin, face.

"This is it!" Chaos spoke softly but enthusiastically. Louder, he announced, "Aether and Pontus! I am Chaos! Show yourselves at once!"

The two appeared in a flash of glitter, which seemed to be their customary entrance/exit. However, they seemed different. More serious. Aether had changed out of his leather biker jacket into a black suit. His blindingly white smile was hidden under a frown. Pontus had switched from the pin striped suit to a black one that matched that of Aether. In his hand, the aquatic primordial held a trident. Aether's hands were clasped together behind him, possibly concealing another weapon.

"Chaos," Pontus spoke emotionlessly. "How unexpected." While all eyes were on Pontus, Aether winked at me quickly, breaking his façade.

"I am here to speak with you both about the coming war. Surely you can feel it?" Chaos asked formally.

Both primordials nodded. "Yes," Aether answered, "we knew the war was coming. Therefore, we've already made our alliances."

Chaos's black eyes widened and his jaw tensed. Other than that, he had no reaction. Zoë's jaw, on the other hand, dropped. My eyes widened as well, wondering what they were doing. Were they about to drag me into this?

Before I could stop her, Zoë marched right up to the two intimidating men. "What are you talking about? Who did you make this alliance with?"

Chaos stopped the angry huntress before she could rip their faces off. Even Aether and Pontus looked mildly surprised that she was so forward.

"Zoë, calm down!" Chaos ordered. "They're extremely powerful, almost as powerful as I am, and certainly more powerful than the idiot that cast you down here. Let me do the talking now."

In my head, I could hear Aether say, "She's feisty. I like her."

Mentally, I accidentally let out a growl.

Aether raised his eyebrow a minuscule amount from his spot next to Pintus. In my head, he said, "Calm down, boy! I was kidding. You've obviously got a thing for her."

I tried to will my face not to blush, but it didn't listen to me. I could hear Aether laughing in my head. I cursed at him, and he withdrew from my mind.

Chaos had already stepped forward by the time I tuned back into the conversation.

"Who, may I ask, are your allies?" He asked politely. He was more powerful than the two of them, but in order to win them over, he was being as polite and respectful as possible.

I had no doubt that Aether, if not Pontus as well, were mocking him mentally.

Pontus crossed his arms, the trident tapping his left arm with the tips with its base in the ground. "You may not ask."

Aether nodded his agreement. "We will only speak to the lady that you so rudely cut off."

Chaos gulped, worried he had offended the two and that they'd declare war on us. He stepped back while gesturing Zoë forwards.

Pontus looked at her with the same emotionless face. "You questioned us, the great primordials?"

Zoë frowned at the arrogant tone, but one look at Chaos made her sigh. Nodding, she took a deep breath. "Yes. Who are your allies?"

Pontus and Aether exchanged a glance, as if asking each other if they should tell Chaos and Zoë. In unison, they nodded.

"Alright," Pontus declared. "We will tell you who our allies are."

"Finally," Zoë muttered under her breath. I was wondering if the two primordials planned on asking me for my opinion in the matter, as I was their ally. But it seems they didn't care.

Aether cleared his throat, not a hint of a smile anywhere on his face. The usually smiling mouth was masked with a concrete frown. "Our allies are..."

I held my breath. This is it. They'll know I lied to them. Chaos and Zoë (especially Zoë) won't forgive me.

"... The Olympians."


	22. Chapter 22

**hey guys! Ok, I'll finally respond to some reviews! Here we go!**

 **Guest: Ill try to make more of a difference between Annabeth and Zoë. I didn't even really notice it until you pointed out how you didn't like it. So, sorry! I'll try to fix it.**

 **Nixi: Sure, you can use Khione in your story. You don't really have to give me credit, because she's just in Greek mythology and in TLH so I used her. Uh, I think Nixi will be with Leo. I also completely missed that last comment, the one about my chapter. What was that supposed to mean?**

 **Traveller: I'm so sorry you had to deal with the Delta computer crash! That's terrible. It must've been awful for you. I hope you somehow got to your destination though!**

 **Ok! Thanks for all the other reviews too guys! I can't answer every single one. :) Alright, I still own nothing, but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **Percy's POV**

" _Our allies are..."_

 _I held my breath. This is it. They'll know I lied to them. Chaos and Zoë (especially Zoë) won't forgive me._

 _"... The Olympians."_

There was a moment of silence. I looked at my two friends, who stood with varying expressions on their faces.

Chaos's jaw was touching the dusty red ground (something I'd advise against), and his eyes bugged out of their sockets. He stammered, "B-but," every few seconds, adding to the lovely screams of torture echoing through the pit.

Zoë stared at the two primordials, seemingly frozen in shock. Her eyes were flaming, holding hate and anger. Yet behind the inferno, I could see sadness. She must not believe that she's getting back to Artemis, to see the moon.

I glanced at the two primordials. They both held perfect poker faces, just as they did when they pranked me into thinking I had failed my friends. Those sons of bitches...

Another moment passed before Zoë got over her shock. She shook her head then stormed over to the two primordials. Stopping less than a foot from the two, she glared up at them. I expected her to start cussing them out, cursing the ground they walk on, punching them in the teeth, ect. Instead, her next move shocked me to the core.

The mighty huntress Zoë Nightshade got down on her knees and _begged_.

"Please, can you reconsider?" She pleaded from the ground.

If possible, Chaos's jaw dropped even further. I think it might've made a hole through Tartarus. (But to what? What's on the other side? China? Is there even an other side? Maybe it's just more Tartarus.) Even the two primordials weren't expecting that to happen. Their eyes widened to a level that would've been comical if I didn't mirror their expressions.

Pontus tried to compose himself, but he still looked like he'd been sucker punched. He cleared his throat. "And why would we do that?"

The answer hit me all of a sudden. They were testing Zoë, just like they had tested me! I knew what they were doing, but now I have the reason. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: Those sons of bitches.

Zoë sat back on her heels, bit her lip, and pondered the answer to their stupid question. Finally, she spoke.

"You need to do that for my friend, Perseus." The two primordials raised an eyebrow, so she continued. "The Olympians screwed him, and all his loved ones, over. They ruined his reputation, saying his murdered his fiancé and betrayed Olympus. His name will forever be a synonym for traitor, murderer, liar, and worse because of the lies the Olympians spread. He needs you se his allies to get back at those that betrayed him and cast him down, to avenge his fallen mother and stepfather, to make the Olympians the the day they ruined his life."

The two primordials were silent for a moment, staring down at Zoë. Then they looked at each other, making it seem as if they were talking mentally with each other. Finally, they nodded.

"Rise, Zoë Nightshade, and reclaim your place beside your friends. You have passed the test," Pontus declared formally.

Zoë did as they commanded. Chaos stepped forwards. "Did you accept Zoë's pleads?"

Pontus and Aether both grinned, snapping their fingers. Instantly they appeared in the clothes I first saw them in, the leather jacket and the navy pin-striped suit.

Aether laughed. "Man, we totally accept Zoë's 'pleads' because we were never allies with the Olympians in the first place!"

Zoë didn't even feel the shock. She just went straight to anger. "What?!"

Pontus waved his hand, cutting off her violent protests. "Yes, Aether is correct. Our actual ally is someone who I believe you'll side with easily."

Chaos narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "And who exactly is that? And will we actually believe in this ally's views? Will we see eye to eye?"

Both Aether and Pontus laughed at that. Several minutes passed before they were calm enough to answer. "I'm willing to bet you will," Pontus answered, a mischievous gleam in his eyes. I wanted to groan. They were about to reveal my alliance, and I had no doubt that they'd do it as suddenly and with as large of a death factor as possible.

"That doesn't tell us who this ally is," Zoë reminded them forcefully. From my spot standing next to her, I could see the rage burning in her eyes at being tricked and degraded.

Aether nodded. "No, it doesn't." He looked dead at me and winked. "Our ally is standing next to you."

The three of us gasped. Chaos and Zoë in surprise, me in irritation and slight terror. However, Zoë was standing between Chaos and I. She made a split second decision and turned towards the one of us that she thought was the secret ally.

Let me give you a hint: It wasn't me.

Chaos frowned at her. "It's not me! I would've told you." Ouch. "Besides, I've been with you the whole time!"

The two of them slowly spun around to stare incredulously at me. "Perseus, is what I'm hearing true?" Zoë asked me.

I didn't answer with words. Instead, i shrugged in embarrassment and tried to awkwardly grin, but i think it turned into more of a grimace.

Chaos gaped at me, mouth open. "But why...?" His gaze returned to the primordials. "Why him?"

Aether grinned, enjoying my pain. "He passed our test." He coughed slightly. "And, uh, there's something else." The grin vanished.

Chaos frowned. "What?"

"In private, please," Pontus clarified. He and Aether led a reluctant Chaos off to the side.

Swallowing hard, I turned to Zoë. Her eyes hadn't left my face. Her face hadn't left it's incredulous look. I didn't think she was going to say anything; I thought she'd keep staring at me and wait for me to crack. Apparently, that wasn't her game plan.

In a soft voice, she whispered, "Why'd you lie to us? Why didn't you tell us? Why didn't you tell _me_?"

I flinched. "Zoë, I... I can explain."

Sighing, she turned away and let her eyes leave my face for the first time in forever. "Explain what? That you were actually hanging with two of the most people deities while I was searching in vain for you? Do you know how worried I was?"

Flinching again, I attempted to tell my side of the story. My eyes stared at her, silently begging her to look at me and let me see her soul through her onyx eyes. "They made me swear that I'd go alone. That i wouldn't tell anyone before or after I met them. The test they made for me was awful. They pretended to be a demigod boy, bloody and wounded in a fight. He was dying. And then he did. That's when they revealed themselves to me."

I sighed, turning my face away and dropping my gaze to the ground. "I do know how worried you were, because I was worried for you too. They tricked me too, saying I failed the test. Saying they weren't going to be our allies. I thought I had failed you and Chaos."

Zoë was about to say something when the three powerful beings returned. All had grin expressions on their faces. And they were all staring at me with an emotion I couldn't quite determine.

"What?" I asked, worried by their solemn faces. "Is something wrong?"

Chaos took a deep breath, facing me. "Perseus, you need to know something."

"What?" I repeated, anticipation and worry rising.

He seemed to brace himself. "We have realized that you possess... The Black Heart."


	23. Chapter 23

**Hey guys! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! Im running late right now; I had to babysit and I'm exhausted from band camp all week. So I'm gonna skip the reviews and give a basic thing. I'll try to speed things up, I'm sorry they're still in Tartarus and you're mad and all that jazz. Also, sorry about the cliffhanger(s). (Jk, not really but I figured I'd say it to sound better.) People weren't overjoyed with it (why not?!) so I'm "apologizing". ;) Anyways, that's about it. I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **WAIT! I do have one more thing: I have a new poll up on my profile! It looks exactly the same as the old one, but it's new. So everyone with an account can vote! It's on what story I should write once I finish this (which shouldn't be for a while but the poll is up anyways). So go vote! I'm also open to PMs on suggestions! :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _He seemed to brace himself. "We have realized that you possess... The Black Heart."_

For once, Zoë looked just as confused as I felt, which gave me a slight support to my ego. Still, I had no clue what the powerful beings were talking about.

I looked down at myself then back at them. "I feel fine. I think I look fine too. Especially for a guy that's been stuck in Tartarus for twenty years."

Aether scoffed. "You look like a peasant compared to me."

I opened my mouth to argue before Pontus interrupted me.

"Girls, girls, you're both pretty." He looked at me. "There's only a few ways people will know they possess the black heart, Perseus. Looks is not one of them."

I frowned. "Then how do you know I have it?"

Aether jumped back in. "You know that blue aura that appears around you whenever you get really angry?"

"The one that happens right before things explode, right?"

"Yes, that one." He rolled his eyes, silently asking if there was another.

Pontus picked up on the conversation again. "That's one of the ways people can tell."

Frowning, I asked, "But why blue? It's the black heart, so doesn't that mean the aura should be black?"

"Maybe it's because of your godly blood," Zoë suggested. I appreciated how she refrained from using _his_ name.

Still, I scowled. "I hope not. I want nothing to do with that ass that used to be my father."

Chaos stared at me. "Perseus, calm down."

I glanced down at myself. I was glowing slightly blue. Growling, I asked, "Will I ever be able to think or talk about that douche without blowing something up?!"

Aether put his hands up in surrender. "Calm down, dude, and we can tell you the answer peacefully."

I scowled at them. A fire was burning in my bloodstream. Something was screaming for me to let the fire set me alight. "You know what? I don't feel like calming down!"

Pontus exhaled deeply. "Take deep breaths, Perseus. After realizing you possess the Heart, it will cause your temper to shorten. You have to regain control and calm down," he explained slowly.

I narrowed my eyes at him. "I just said that I didn't feel like calming down." I could see the aura glowing more fiercely around me.

Chaos tried to get through to me. "Perseus, the Heart will react with negative emotions. Hence the "black" part. When you get angry, it reacts. You could accidentally kill someone if you're not careful. Please, calm down."

The voice screaming at me in my head became even louder, drowning out all outside distractions and even my own thoughts. _Let it go! Let it go_!

Either my subconscious was telling me that I secretly had a thing for Elsa, or it wanted me to let my internal fire set me alight.

The voice quieted enough so that I could hear my surrounds once i came to a decision. The blue aura around me was now so strong that I felt like a glow stick after a kid cracked it and shook it up.

Chaos, Aether, and Pontus were all gesturing like hyper Italians, telling me to calm down and _breathe, damnit_. I could still here the voice in the background though, a soothing female voice whispering in my ear. _Let it go, let it go_!

I took a deep breath and murmured, "Can't hold it back anymore..."

That stopped the three primordials for a millisecond. "What?" They asked in unison, a similar expression of confusion on all their faces.

"Did he just recite lyrics from Frozen's _Let It Go_?" Aether asked incredulously.

Pontus' eyes widened. "Oh no. No." He stared dead at me. "Don't listen to the voice right now!"

 _Let it go, let it go!_

"Turn away and slam the door," I muttered.

The three deities tried to stop me, tried to calm me, tried to stop the fire that was burning through my bones. But it was too late.

"And I don't care! What you're going to say!" I yelled, finishing up my version of _Let It Go._

Suddenly, there was a huge explosion behind the three primordials. They whirled around to watch the blue flames crawl higher into the cloudy Tartarus sky. The blue aura surrounding me hardly faded.

"Let the storm rage on!" I continued. There was another explosion, this one behind me. I turned to watch in hysterical madness, chuckling as the monsters that were there screamed in pain and horror. My eyes drank in the sight. The aura still surrounded me.

I turned to my left, ready to explode something (or someone) else, when a pair of onyx eyes stopped me. For a moment, I had trouble remembering who she was, dressed all in black with blue flames illuminating her pale face. She stared me down, never taking her eyes off mine.

Her name hit me like a freight train. _Zoë_. How could I have forgotten her name? I never took my eyes off hers.

Gently, she started talking to me in a soothing voice. Not the urgent underlying tone that the others used, but one that promised a relaxing peace. Something my life had always lacked. "Perseus, I know the fire is inviting, but its charm will fade. It's playing with your mind, hoping you will give in to the anger and hatred. But you're not going to, are you?"

The way she said it made me want to assure her that I would never do such a thing. Id never give into the anger and hatred. I jerked my head back and forth awkwardly, hoping she knew I was trying to say no.

She smiled softly at me. "Good. Because the Perseus Jackson I know would never do that."

I nodded slowly, agreeing with her statement.

"See? You're overcoming that Heart's powers now. Just keep listening to my voice."

I looked down at myself and sure enough, the blue glow around my body was finally fading. Even the blue flames all around us were dying down ever so slowly.

The yelling of the three primordials had ceased.

Zoë kept smiling up at me, encouraging me to keep taking control. Her eyes never faltered from mine.

"Good job. You're almost done." She paused. "Perseus, the glow is gone! You did it! You took control!"

I grinned at her, no longer feeling that burning hatred lighting up my blood. "You helped me do it. It was a group effort."

To my left, Aether cleared his throat loudly. I rolled my eyes, turning to face him. Quickly, before I had turned around all the way, Zoë reached out and squeezed my hand.

She let go before I could squeeze back.

"So, if you two lovebirds are done, we'd like to explain to you what the Black Heart is exactly," Pontus stated.

"You know, especially after you almost blew us all up," Aether added.

 **Sorry for the crappy ending guys. I've had a splitting headache all day, and I blacked out at band camp yesterday (Monday) which caused a little hit of a panic attack for me. But once this headache goes away, I should be fine. Knock on wood... (Oh, where's a tree when you need one?)**


	24. Chapter 24

**Hey guys! Woah, thanks for all the reviews last chapter! There were a ton! You guys are awesome. :) Anyways, I'm gonna do a quick, general review answering. Here we go: Sorry last chapter wasn't too serious. But I'm not too good with the complete seriousness. You gotta know how to laugh too, right? I also don't really have a thing with Frozen; my cousins are in town and the youngest one (7 years old I think) always runs around singing** ** _Let It Go_** **, and it must've been subconsciously brain washing me or something. ;) Again, I apologize to the Frozen haters for putting _Let It Go_ in there, but in my defense, I was brainwashed. ;) Also, my headache is now gone, so yay! And I'm not dead, so everything is good. :) I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter. :) **

**Percy's POV**

" _So, if you two lovebirds are done, we'd like to explain to you what the Black Heart is exactly," Pontus stated._

 _"You know, especially after you almost blew us all up," Aether added._

My ears turned pink, but the three ignored my discomfort. I think I saw Zoë blushing too, but it could've just been reflected light from the hazy, red Tartarus sky.

When she spoke, her voice didn't have a tone of embarrassment or discomfort. "Can you please explain to us what this Black Heart is? I think that would help everyone, not just Perseus."

Pontus nodded. "The Black Heart has only been known to have been possessed by a select few. Many more people may have had it, but either they didn't know or it was a secret they took to the grave. Everyone that's known to have possessed the Heart has at least one thing in common; they have very powerful, sometimes strange or abnormal, powers."

"Like the aura I get before I blow stuff up," I suggested.

Pontus nodded. "Yes. That is both abnormal and powerful. As a, ahem, _former_ son of an aquatic god, it is strange that the Heart gives you the power to create explosions. Yet that could be extremely useful for you and dangerous to your enemies should you learn to master it."

I frowned. "Is everyone with the Heart able to cause explosions?"

Pontus hesitated, then nodded. "To some degree. Some could cause the massive explosions that you do, while I believe others could will a paper to explode into flames for a campfire. Each person couldn't control it at first, then they slowly learned and understood their powers."

I nodded to show I was still listening.

Aether added to Pontus' speech. "Each person also gets different, unique powers. They unlock these only after learning about the Heart. Like one person had powers over water. Obviously, you're not going to get that one, because you were born with powers over water."

"Can you tell what powers he might get?" Zoë asked the primordials. "Just so it doesn't come as a huge surprise one day if he sprouts a tail and thrns into a squirrel or something."

I opened my mouth to tell her how offended I was (not really, I just wanted to tease her for bullying me), but Chaos interrupted.

"No, we can't really predict that. No one can. Unless, of course, Perseus gets the power to see into the future."

"That'd be cool!" I exclaimed, grinning.

Pontus wagged his finger at me like i was a naughty dog that just left a special surprise on his favorite carpet. (Aka a turd.) "Perseus, you have to be extremely careful when using your powers from the Heart."

I scowled at him like a teenager whose dad just said he couldn't go to a concert. "Why? I'll die?" I snorted, internally rolling my eyes. Yeah right.

Pontus frowned at me disapprovingly. "Actually, a lot worse."

"What could be worse than that? Going to hell? I'm already here!"

The three primordials shook their heads at me. "You'd lose yourself and your identity. Do you remember anything from Harry Potter?" Aether asked me.

I nodded slowly. "Yeah, I watched the movies with..." Flashes of memories ran through my mind. Blonde hair. Gray eyes. Blood, so much blood...

I blinked, dispelling the images for the moment. "Yeah, I've seen the movies."

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Zoë watching me with concern evident on her face. It took all my will power to keep my gaze on Aether.

"Well, that's fine I suppose. Do you remember the dementors?"

"Those creepy things that looked like the shades in the Underworld?"

He nodded. "Exactly. They could give someone a Dementor's Kiss, which would steal the soul from someone's body. That left them just an empty husk. Do you remember any of this?"

"Vaguely. What does this have to do with... What were we talking about again?"

The four people around my simultaneously slapped their foreheads with the palms of their hands.

"The Black Heart," Zoë supplied with a sigh.

"Oh, right. So what does a dementor's kiss have to do with the Heart?" I asked.

"Those are the consequences if you let it control you. Each time you use the powers, until you've just about mastered them, they will try to take ahold of you. If you give in tk the darkness and hate and anger, it will consume you until you are no more than a husk. You won't be anything more than a machine of destruction."

"That's why it's called the Black Heart. Emphasis on _black_ ," Pontus added. "And no, Perseus, I'm not being racist." I closed my mouth and let him continue. "It feeds on your negative, dark, _black_ emotions. And if you give in, the Heart will destroy all positive emotions, and eventually all emotions until you're as full of life as a robot."

"That's we compared it to the dementor's kiss. Because hoth leave you a shell of the former person," Chaos finished. "No identity, no personality. Just a shell."

"That's why you have to be careful," Zoë whispered to me. I nodded to let the four overprotective people know that I understood their words. I know the consequences now.

We stood there in silence for a moment. Then it became awkward, so I broke it.

Clapping my hands together loudly, I grinned when everyone flinched. "Ok! So who wants to head somewhere else and find a campsite? I think it's almost Tartarus-night."

Chaos smirked. "I think i have something better. Since we have nothing else to do in Tartarus, we can go to my palace now."

Zoë cheered at the news, while I smiled widely. Aether and Pontus looked at Chaos hopefully.

"Can we go too?" They asked, giving Chaos puppy dog eyes.

He rolled his eyes and sighed. "Fine. Now everyone, hold hands. We don't want to forget someone." He smirked, making me think that he wouldn't mind that in all actuality.

I grabbed Zoë's small hand in mine, smiling at her. We were finally leaving.

When all our hands were connected, Chaos snapped his fingers on his hand (which was free) before grabbing my other hand. We all stood in a circle as a gust of wind blew around us. Then suddenly, we were on the wind, being carried higher and higher. Soon we were gone from Tartarus.

We were flying above the ground, above cities and mountains and oceans ghag j haven't seen for over twenty years. It was beauitiful. The sun was setting on the horizon, basking everything in a reddish-pink glow.

We kept rising higher until we reached what could only be Chaos' palace. And it out the view of Earth to shame.


	25. Chapter 25

**Hey guys! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter. Also, I'm just gonna give a general thing. Here we go. I apologize about the terrible spelling last chapter. I had to write the majority of that all on Saturday night because of various personal reasons. So I was running on adrenaline, and it started running think at the end. And I was being kinda careless with my spelling, wanting to get the chapter out for you guys. So I apologize again. That's for all the hecklers. :) Not everyone heckled, but I decided to address the hecklers. Thanks to those of you that didn't heckle me! And I didn't mind the heckling. (That's a fun word, heckle. In all forms.) ;) Anyways, my poll is still up if anyone still wants to vote! :) I** **also have a lot of other stories that you can read if you're bored and have free time! I own nothing, but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _We kept rising higher until we reached what could only be Chaos' palace. And it out the view of Earth to shame._

Right in front of us was a mountain, rising high into the sky. Around the middle was a ring of mist hanging in the air, borderlining on fog. On each side of the fog barrier, building could be seen hugging the mountain. It looked like a village was sitting on the mountain side!

Chaos grinned at the stunned expressions on everyone's face, especially when their Sun rose up from the peak of the mountain, lighting everything with its soft rays. The most sparkled in the dawn's light, making everything look like something out of a fantasy book. Right when the hero(s) make their way to the enchanted land that will inevitably become their beautiful second home.

"This was my first planet, and honestly my favorite. It's name is Fermoso Planeta, which is Beautiful Planet in Galician. However, the inhabitants of this planet usually prefer to simply call it Fermoso," Chaos informed us. He looked at the tall mountain standing in the midst of the others that looked like hills on comparison. Smiling to himself, he basked in its glory before turning back to us.

"This mountain is the oldest and tallest on this planet, and in all of the universe. It's name is Rocha Alta, also from Galician origin. It translates to Tall Rock. Many of the inhabitants live on Rocha Alta, which is where i also have my palace."

Zoë gasped. "You have a palace?" It shouldn't surprise us, seeing as how he's creator of the universe, but I don't think we fully comprehend his powers. Especially because we were both surprised to hear that he has a palace.

Chaos smiled down at her. "Of course. And, seeing as how I doubt we all want to climb the mountain to get to my palace, I can just flash us there. I figured you might want to take in the beautiful view. As well as learn some new things."

We all nodded in agreement before all holding hands again, letting Chaos teleport us into his palace. Immediately, I was stunned by the incredible decor.

The walls and ceiling were a rich wine red, while the floor was a creamy white marble. Chandeliers hung in intervals from the ceiling, intricate designs using crystals on each one. Tall candles in candle holders lined the walls, making the whole corridor look like something out of a Victorian castle or a fantasy book.

Chaos spread his arms wide. "This is the east wing of the palace. This is where, if I have important visitors, they stay. There's a dining hall, abeit a very fancy one, down the hall. You won't be staying here though."

Aether pouted. "What, we're not important to you?" He pretended to wipe tears from his eyes.

Chaos rolled his eyes at the immature primordial. "No, you're not." He paused for a second. "Especially because this hall is mainly for people that I want to impress, especially if they're hard to impress." He glanced at the four of us. "You've all been stuck in Tartarus for at least fifteen years. I doubt you have very high standards."

I gasped in mock offense. "That hurts. I, for one, have very high expectations."

Chaos rolled his eyes again. "Let's keep going on our tour."

We all held hands again and let Chaos teleport us to another corridor.

The walls and ceiling in this hallway were an evergreen color, with the floor a dark wood. On the ceiling, electric lights covered by a semi-sphere of opaque plastic glowed. They gave the corridor a cozy feel, unlike the extremely fancy east wing. Instead of large candles lining the walls, the green walls held small shelves with books and a small jar with a candle inside as a feeble light to illuminate the book covers. I saw Moby Dick, A Christmas Carol, and several other classics before my attention was snagged.

"This is the west wing!" Chaos announced. "This is where my average guests come to stay. This is where you four will be staying, so we'll be coming back to this corridor soon so I can show you your rooms."

Again, everyone nodded. We al started to join hands to teleport again, but I had a very important question to ask.

"Is there a dining hall in this wing too?"

Chaos (and everyone else, too, I think) rolled their eyes. "Yes, Perseus, there is a dining hall here."

Satisfied with the answer, I grabbed Zoë's hand and prepared to teleport.

The next room we arrived in had vaulted ceilings and large handing lights. The walls were mostly large glass windows, letting in the dawn sun. Where the windows connected were strips of wall painted a soft cream color. The floor was a slightly worn looking, light-colored wood, with a grand piano sitting off to the side.

Chaos grinned. "This is the front room. All that enter my palace (using normal means of travel), enter through this room first. At special occasions, this room serves as a grand ballroom."

We teleported again. This time, we were standing in a dark room instead of the brightly lit corridors and the sunshine-filled ballroom. The walls of this room were a dark gray, and the floor a black tile. There were no windows at all, hardly anything to give it a splash of color. The only thing that "brightened" up the room was a desk sitting in the middle of the floor.

The desk was a combination of purple and black swirls, with little lights moving across it that resembled shooting stars.

"This is my office," Chaos said. "If you need to find me, or if I need to speak with you, this is where you will come. However, you don't need to know its exact location just yet. If you need to see me, a servant will always be around to show you the way." He indicated to the desk in the middle of the room. "This is my desk. As you'll notice, there are no chairs. Usually whatever I need to show you will involve you standing, but if it doesn't, I can always create chairs."

We nodded. Pontus spoke up, however.

"If I may ask, why is it so dark in here?"

Chaos cocked his head sideways. "Well, there are no windows so no assassins can come try to dispose of me or anyone else in here. I've lost too many soldiers that way... I may usually be able to sense things, but given the right circumstances, I'm barely better than an Olympian. Also, the darkness works well if I want to hide. And if I want to show a video. It's good for several reasons, really."

Pontus nodded his head slightly. "That does make sense."

Chaos told us to all grab hands again. We teleported one last time, ending up in the west wing. Chaos took four keys out of his pocket and handed them out to each of us.

"I am now going to assign you to your rooms. Perseus, take room 5. Zoë, you're across the hall at room 6. Pontus, I'm putting you in room 3, and Aether gets room 4. The numbers are on the doors. Eventually, the numbers will temporarily fade into your names. If the decor inside is not to your liking, it can be changed with a simple thought." With that said, Chas disappeared.

I exchanged an uneasy glance with Zoë before turning towards my door and opening it. The walls were blue, the sheets bed green. My eyes skimmed over the room, taking everything in at once, before one thing registered in my brain. My eyes shot back to the bed, taking in the figure sitting on the edge. The person sitting there was supposed to be dead...

I gasped, barely realizing that I had dropped my key onto the green rug.

 **Hey guys! I'm going to school starting tomorrow (Thursday) so chapters might be a little shorter now. Hopefully not too much, but heads up! Thanks!**


	26. Chapter 26

**Hey guys! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! Until further notice, I think I'm just gonna clump all the review answers into one general thing right here. So if you want answers, look in my main AN! The other way is too time consuming, and I only have so long to work now that I have school all day. So here we go! If you guys want, I can do a POV from one of the characters not in Tartarus. Probably either Artemis or Nico. You can tell me in the comments if you want that! Also, I am American! I speak English. (In case you can't tell! ;) ). To everyone that had guesses on who the figure is: Nice guesses! Unfortunately, I'll have to save who the figure is for later. (As in in a paragraph or two!) So I can't tell you know. That'd be cheating. ;) Anyways, in related news, my poll is still up! Go vote if you want! It'd be fun to do if you're bored! Other than that, i** **own nothing but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _My eyes shot back to the bed, taking in the figure sitting on the edge. The person sitting there was supposed to be dead..._

 _I gasped, barely realizing that I had dropped my key onto the green rug._

"What... What are _you_ doing here?" I managed to choke out, stunned and feeling like I had gotten punched in the face.

I had watched them die... I was there... Yet their lips curved up gently in a hint of a smile as they said, "Aren't you surprised to see me?" Instead of a light tone that's usually associated with those words, they were tense, as if they didn't know if I'd hug them or punch them.

Honestly, I wasn't sure what to do either. For years, over two decades, I had grieved their loss. Knowing I couldn't save them from destroying themselves to save me and everyone else. I had sworn that I'd gladly trade my life for theirs, letting them live in my place. Obviously not in Tartarus, but you still get the point.

Now that I had the chance to apologize for my mistakes (letting them die, not fighting harder, making the choices I did that led to their death), I wasn't sure which of us should be apologizing.

I was about to speak, when suddenly I wasn't in my blue-walled room anymore. I was a kid again, only sixteen years old exactly. Most kids get cars or parties on their sixteenth birthday. I got to watch an old friend (ok, more of a frenemy) die.

I saw myself, kneeling next to a body that was slowly turning into a lifeless corpse. Olympus's throne room was smoldering around us, I mean them, I mean... I'm not sure what I mean.

I watched myself talk to the carcass, along with a blond girl that was on the other side of the body. Watching it from a third person point of view, I really noticed the amount of blood pooling on the floor.

My vision flickered, returning me to first person view. Yet I was still in the flashback, now staring down into the face of my old frenemy who ended his life so thousands more could live instead. His blue eyes that were starting to glaze over and become lifeless were staring into my green ones. His blond hair, lying around his head like a golden halo, was mixed with blood. Blond hair mixed with blood... Blond hair mixed with blood...

Suddenly, I wasn't in the Olympian throne room anymore. I was kneeling next to a different blond. Her gray eyes that were starting to glaze over and become lifeless were staring into my green ones. Her blond hair was sprawled across the grass like a golden halo, because she was an angel. My angel. Her blond hair was mixed with blood.

I was shaken back to the present. Literally. I blinked, and I was gone from the two blondes that were dying. Instead, I was kneeling on the ground, sweating and panting, staring into the face of the blond man that had ended his life to saved thousands. He was looking at me in worry and confusion.

"Luke," I murmured, lunging forward quickly to hug him. He was taken aback for a second, before he hugged me back.

"I'm so sorry. So so sorry," he kept repeating as we embraced on the floor of my bedroom.

After a moment, I pulled back to look at him. He still had his scar across his face, and his blue eyes still sparkled mischievously. Instead of holding bitterness and anger, now they shone with happiness and joy. And his blond hair didn't have any streaks of red in it.

"I understand now why you did it. I didn't before, but I do now," I told him, overcoming my post-flashback anxiety.

"Percy..." Luke started, "I realize that what I did was wrong. I might've hated the Olympians, but I chose the wrong way to go about it."

I nodded. "Kronos is a bad guy. He wanted bad things, and he blinded you to what was good. But you saw the truth in the end, and you ended up saving countless lives."

Luke nodded in agreement before the concerned look appeared. "Percy, are you okay?"

"Of course I am."

The son of Hermes frowned. "You didn't look okay a moment ago when you seemed to be having a panic attack."

... Oh. _That_. Why'd he have to bring that up? "I'm fine," I tried to assure him. "I've just got to get the hang of controlling my flashbacks."

"Flashbacks?!" The concerned look didn't lessen. If anything, it intensified.

I wanted to kick myself, but I figured if I did, Luke's maternal instincts might kick in and he'd force me into bed.

Trying to play it off, i shrugged, scoffing slightly. "It's no big deal." Yeah, it's just a terrifying, insanity-inducing vision that happens weekly. Nothing to worry about.

Luke looked like he didn't believe me, but he (reluctantly) dropped the subject. "What are you doing here?"

I blinked. "Well, this is my room... I think the better question would be what are you doing here?"

"I meant what are you doing with Chaos?" Luke sighed, rolling his eyes.

Oh... I cleared my throat. "I knew that. Anyways, it's a long story."

"I have time."

I shrugged. "Ok then. It all started when he saved my life in Tartarus—"

"Tartarus?" Luke interrupted. "What were _you_ doing _there_? You're the Hero of Olympus!"

" _Was_ ," I corrected, scowling.

"Was?" Luke repeated in stunned confusion. "What happened?"

I sighed. "The long story just got longer. Still want to here it?"

Luke nodded eagerly, so I recounted everything that had happened. Everything that caused me to be wrongfully banished, everything that had occurred in Tartarus, and everything that had happened between then and now.

Once I was finished, Luke was scowling too. "The Olympians... You were innocent! Why would they do that to you?"

I shrugged, wondering that myself. "It wasn't all the Olympians. It was mainly Ares, Athena, Hera, Zeus, and _Poseidon,"_ I spat. I took a deep breath to make sure I didn't accidentally send Luke back to Hades in a fiery explosion. "Although I think Apollo might've been in agreement with it as well."

Luke shook his head in disgust. "And here I thought they had changed. Especially after that wish you made after my death."

"Some of them did. Artemis became more open to men, and Aphrodite stopped torturing people with their love lives. Slightly. And several others changed too."

Luke nodded slowly. "I guess I can see that. I haven't witnessed them in person for so long, so I wouldn't know."

I grinned. "I won't hold it against you." There was a brief moment of silence in which neither one of us spoke. Then a thought occurred to me, which I had to voice. "Luke, I told you what I'm doing here. What are you doing here? I thought you were in Elysium."

He sighed, suddenly looking older than his physical age. "It's a long story."

"I have time."


	27. Chapter 27

**Hey guys! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! :) You guys rock. Anyways, don't have a ton of time cause I had a TON of homework. (It's only been a week! :/) So I'm gonna just do a quick thing about reviews before jumping into "news". Ok: I had a lot of fun reading those reviews about people's reactions about Luke! I think Greekgodsrox had the most humorous one. ;) At least, I found it funny because I'm the dream crusher. It probably wouldn't be funny to a normal person, but I took pleasure in crushing your dreams. ;) Mwahaha. Anyways, here's something _IMPORTANT_! Woah, _IMPORTANT_ , that's so crazy, I know. (I'm hoping people look at it cause it's in all caps, underlined, and italicized). Here's the _IMPORTANT_ info: I'm gonna be on vacation for a couple days! I won't be able to update again until... Next Thursday. Which is September 8 (I think). Anyways, that's what was _IMPORTANT_. Also, don't forget about that poll I have up! Vote if you care! (And you have an account. I'll forgive you if you don't.) :) Anyways, I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter! :) **

**Percy's POV (I was tonna do Nico, but couldn't think of what to say, so I decided not to torture you)**

 _He sighed, suddenly looking older than his physical age. "It's a long story."_

 _"I have time."_

Luke looked at me out of the corner of his eye for a moment, probably trying to decide if I was telling the truth, if I honestly wanted to hear his story. I tried to keep my face as open and honest as I could, and I was finally rewarded by a small nod of his head.

"Alright," Luke said. "But get comfortable." He paused for a moment to let me rearrange my limbs, then started his tale.

"After my death, I was sent to the Underworld to be judged. The judges ended up agreeing in my favor and sent me to Elysium. I was overjoyed, and spent most of my time there walking around, trying to find the heroes that had died in the Titan War so I could apologize. I found Charlie and Selena, Bianca diAngelo, and countless others.

"After a while, Zeus seemed to realize i was in Elysium. He threw a temper tantrum (as usual) and demanded that Hades put me in the Fields of Punishment. Hades refused, saying I had been a hero in the end, and that I had redeemed myself. Zeus would have none of that, and to make sure Hades agreed, he threatened Nico's life should I remain in Elysium.

"Hades cast me from Elysium, although I could tell he was torn up about it internally. Instead of sending me to the Fields of Punishment, however, he sent me to the Fields of Asphodel. I stayed there for several years. Zeus never found out because everytime he would ask, Hades would show him a false soul that resembled me suffering in the Fields of Punishment.

"Hades pitied me and the terrible afterlife I was given, so he let me keep my memories while I hid in Asphodel. Which turned out to be disappointing for me, because I was the only one. I was alone, a solid face wandering amongst millions of shadows."

Luke paused for a moment, lost in memory. "I'm not quite sure how long I was there. All I know was that i was wandering at the edges of Asphodel when suddenly an African-American man came up to me and offered me a new home, a home where I wasn't forgotten and lonely. I accepted, and I've been here with Chaos ever since."

I frowned. "Then how'd you know this was my room?"

Luke shrugged. "I didn't until you walked in. I heard that Chaos had invited new warriors to join our cause. I figured I'd meet them, so I decided to come to this room and wait for one of the warriors."

"And if a woman walked through those doors?"

He grinned. "I'd cross that bridge if I came to it."

We laughed. After a moment, our laughing slowly died down. "You know, Luke," I started, "I'm really glad you're here."

The son of Hermes frowned, a reaction you don't usually expect from people after you confess that you appreciate their presence. "Why? Is that sarcasm? Mockery?"

"No! I'm honestly just glad to see you again."

He scowled. "Why? I've almost killed you countless times, almost killed your family and friends countless times, and attempted to take over Olympus, therefore destroying your way of life and your childhood."

Well, when you put it that way... I shook my head. "That doesn't matter. In the end, you saved me, and everyone. And I thought we parted on better terms, almost friends. Or, if you want, friends."

I felt super awkward saying it, but it had to be said.

Luke looked like he had just been socked in the face. "You'd-you'd really want to be my friend after all I've done? You're really g-glad to see me? This isn't all some cruel trick?"

I shook my head. "No, man, I really want to be your friend." I grinned. "Awkward bro hug?"

Luke grinned back. "Awkward bro hug." Then, still kneeling on the ground, we awkwardly hugged.

After an uncomfortable moment, we separated. Luke said that he'd see me again at dinner, but he had some things he wanted to do beforehand. I wished him farewell, then collapsed onto the fluffy mattress I had been given on my bed.

I didnt even even realize I had fallen asleep until I found myself been roughly awoken. The lights had been flicked on, blinding me even with my eyes closed. Then whoever had disturbed my peace rolled me off my warm, soft mattress. I landed on the floor with a heavy _thud_.

"Ow..." I groaned, trying to ease the pain in my entire body while still going to back to sleep. After a moment, i realized that I couldn't get both, and since the pain was preventing me from sleeping, I figured I'd do something about that first.

I opened my eyes, trying to prepare myself for the blinding lights, only to scream in (manly) terror. Less than a foot from my face was Zoë's face, staring down at me. Her black eyes stared deeply into my green ones, and I was afraid she'd be able to see into my soul.

"I was worried," she said finally, drawing away. Immediately I found myself missing her warm breath on my face and the scent of pine that followed her.

"About?" I managed to grunt out.

"You. I knocked several times, but you didn't answer. It made me worried. I had to bust the door down just to get in!"

My eyes attempted to find the door. There it was, leaning sideways, only one of the hinges still attached to the door.

"Why roll me out of bed though?" I gasped out, still trying to get all the air back into my body after it had been knocked out.

Zoë blushed. "I panicked. I thought you were dead. So I flicked the lights on and attempted to roll you over to examine your body for any injuries. But you're heavier than you look, and I couldn't hold you up. That's how you ended up on the floor. And then I was worried that I had made you worse, which is why I was leaning over you."

"Makes sense," I said shortly.

Zoë bit her lip. "So, I came in here originally– before knocking your door down– to tell you that it's dinner time. Were going to meet a bunch of other people, a special because-we're-new kinda thing. And they definitely want you there. I'll give you a couple minutes though."

She left, and I laid on the ground for another minute or two, thinking. If Luke was here, was anyone else I might know?


	28. Chapter 28

**Hey guys! I'm back. Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! I've decided that I'm not too fond of doing the review answering. It takes a lot of time, time I could be using to write the actual chapter. So, I'm gonna scrap that for good. If you need anything or need to know anything, feel free to PM me, unless you're a guest. I'll try to make exceptions for guests, since they can't PM. Just say in the review, and I'll attempt to get back to everyone in due time. I usually check my PMs once or twice every 24 hours, so it won't take too long for me to get back to you. Anyways, I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **PS: if practically everyone says something in a review (ex: awful spelling/grammar) then I'll try to address it in my AN.**

 **Percy's POV**

 _Zoë left, and I laid on the ground for another minute or two, thinking. If Luke was here, was anyone else I might know?_

I took a minute to get up and try to fix my appearance. If I'm supposed to be a "great warrior" (to quote Luke), then I can't show up looking like I had just woken up with drool still on my cheek.

It took me another minute to find the dining hall. Yes, I know it was just at the end of the hall, but I ended up getting all turned around and started walking the wrong way. Not my finest moment.

I hope my late appearance can be considered "fashionably late". And I really hope it isn't super awkward when I arrive.

The fates weren't on my side. (Is it even the fates still? Aren't I above them? Does some other destiny deity hate me too?)

I pushed open the heavy door to the dining hall, it squeaking every couple of inches. Suddenly, all eyes were on me.

There were at least ten tables packed with people, even some people that didn't really resemble humans. They had blue skin, green skin, unnaturally white skin, tan skin. Orange eyes, red eyes, pink eyes, blue eyes. Pink hair, blue hair, green hair, blond hair. There was one small group of people (maybe four or five) that had large puffy orange hair, and a strange mix of tan and orange skin. I frowned slightly looking at them, thinking that maybe i had seen a person like that before in the mortal world.

For at least good solid two minutes I stood alone in the doorway. Everyone kelt staring at me, apparently "drinking in my appearance", as I was told later. Except for those that knew me (examples: Zoë, Pontus, Aether, Luke, Chaos). Gods know what they were doing. Probably snickering at me. Those jerks, letting me lose my dignity.

Finally, I was saved by a girl dressed in a flowing black cloak. She stood up from her table, which had other people in cloaks (mostly black), and addressed the crowd. "Soldiers, this is the strongest warrior you will ever meet!"

They cheered. Several took their drinks and thrust them into the air in a bar-style salute.

"He was exiled by the gods to be tortured for eternity in Tartarus, but he escaped from his tormentor Iapetus!"

They cheered again.

"He risked his life to save his female comrade when facing a drakon, which turned out to be Lord Chaos, who was disguised to test the two!" She paused for grammatical effect. There was dead silence in the room. "... And they passed!"

The loudest cheer yet came from the assembled troops.

"What's his name?" A person with blue skin yelled from a table towards the back, leaping up onto the tabletop to be heard.

By now, the girl in the cloak had made her way over to wear I stood. I couldn't see her face due to the hood, but she leaned down to whisper to me. "What do you want your codename to be? You'll be called that on missions and outside of this palace."

I thought for a moment. This codename I choose will stick with me throughout my entire career in this army. That's how everyone outside of this army will know me. My allies and enemies...

"I'll be Raven," I decided. Dark as night, sometimes sinister, and has the one of the best poems written about it. (Don't judge me; I've read Edgar Allen Poe's poetry.)

The girl nodded in acceptance. She straightened up and announced to the troops, "His codename shall be Raven!"

They cheered.

A girl with green skin stood up on her table in the middle of the room. "What's his real name?" She asked loudly. There was silence.

The cloaked girl next to me looked at me. Or, I assume she did. "Do you want to tell them?" She whispered, but I had a feeling that in the almost-suffocating silence, everyone could hear her.

I contemplated that question for another moment. I was ready to leave that life, the life of Perseus Jackson, behind. But I owe it to them to be honest. Maybe...

I whispered back, "I'll let them know my name, only if they all swear that they'll never call me by it unless I give them specifically permission."

The girl nodded, repeating my statement in a louder voice for all to hear. After a second, they all swore on various rivers and deities to abide by my guidelines.

The girl nodded her head to me. "You wanna do the honors?" I took a deep breath, nodded, then took a step forwards.

"My name is Perseus Jackson!" I yelled out. "The former son of Poseidon!"

There was no cheer this time. All we were left with was deafening silence, so silent that I could hear a girl drop her stud earring on the floor in the very back of the hall.

Finally, a short man with pale colored hair spoke up. " _The_ Perseus Jackson, the one that defeated the Minotaur?"

I nodded. "Yes."

Suddenly, the dining hall erupted into noise, everyone asking twenty different questions at once.

"The one who beat Ares in a fight at the age of twelve?" "The one that returned the Master Bolt to Zeus?" "The one that survived the Sea of Monsters?" "The one that held up the sky?" "The one that navigated the labyrinth?" "The one that led a small army against the forces of Kronos?" "The one that defeated Kronos in the Olympus throne room?" "The one that had his memory taken by Hera?" "The one that became praetor of Camp Jupiter?" "The one that survived Tartarus with his girlfriend?" "The one that battled against Gaea and her Giants?" And several other questions.

Not all of them were that realistic though. I heard a few shouts of "The one that's secretly a merman?" Oops, guess it's not a secret anymore. (Don't take that seriously; I'm kidding.) Or "the one that's a serial killer on the Gastof?" I didn't even know that was a actual thing until it was shouted out. Or, my personal favorite, "the one that is secretly a robot being controlled by a miniature creature?"

I waited for everyone to calm down. People were jumping up and down, shouting at me, shouting at their friends, throwing food when two theories didn't agree.

Soon, it became apparent that they weren't quieting down any time soon. Taking matters into my own hands, I roared, "Silence!"

Immediately, everyone say down and shut up. It went from football bleachers when the team scores to the dead silence we had after I announced my name. All eyes were staring intently at me, which was slightly unnerving to say the least.

"My name is Perseus Jackson," I repeated. "I did defeat the Minotaur and Ares. I did return Zeus's lightning bolt, survive the Sea of Monsters, held up the sky, and travelled through the labyrinth. I did lead an army against Kronos's forces, although it was really a different person that had the killing blow on the Titan. My memory was taken, and I briefly served as praetor of Camp Jupiter. I did survive Tartarus with my girlfriend..." I flinched ever so slightly. "I also battled against Gaea and her Giants, along with doing several other things in my life."

I smirked slightly in amusement. "I, however, am not a merman, a serial killer, or a robot controlled my a tiny creature." The people that yelled out those conspiracies groaned in disappointment. I heard the person with the robot theory mutter, "That's what they all say."

My stomach rumbled, yelling at me for chating with everyone instead of stuffing my face. Politely, I excuses myself.

"I'm hungry, so I'm going to go eat. For any other questions, you know who I am."


	29. Chapter 29

**Hey guys! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter. Just to clear something up: Both Jason _and_ Percy lost their memories. Not just Jason. Just a friendly reminder! (BTW: if you're on tumblr or something and it says "friendly PJO/HOO reminder", it IS NOT FRIENDLY. Just a warning guys. It comes with some intense feels, for those of you that are innocent in that department.) Also, I have some bad news. This chapter will be a little shorter than usual. I had my first football game of the season (I'm in the marching band this year) and i got home really late and was too exhausted to write. And then the next night, I had to stay up late for other reasons and I was supposed to go to sleep early so I could get up for church at 8 am. So, I am both exhausted and really sorry right now. Anyways, that's about it. I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter! **

**Percy's POV**

 _My stomach rumbled, yelling at me for chating with everyone instead of stuffing my face. Politely, I excused myself._

 _"I'm hungry, so I'm going to go eat. For any other questions, you know who I am."_

It took me a moment, but as soon as I shouted for her name, I found Zoë sitting in the back. She observed me keenly as I approached, peering at me from over a humongous cheeseburger.

"You going to eat all that?" I asked her, taking a seat across from her. Her only response was to hug the burger closer to her hody, away from me. She kept boring holes into my face with her eyes.

"What?" I finally snapped. "Something on my face?"

Smirking slightly, Zoë shook her head. "No."

"Then what?"

She shrugged slightly. "I was trying to see how that conversation you had in front of everyone changed you." She causally took a bite of her burger.

"Changed me?" I repeated, frowning at her cryptic words.

She nodded, savoring the bite of burger in her mouth, chewing and then swallowing oh so slowly. Probably just to spite me.

"How would that have changed me?" I asked, scowling at her.

She opened her mouth to speak when a new voice cut her off. "Hey Percy."

I growled to myself in frustration as Luke sat down next to me. He had unknowingly just caused me a minor headache, trying to figure out what the hell Zoë was talking about.

I forced myself to appear calm and casual. "Hey Luke. You remember Zoë, right?" I gestured towards said ex-huntress. Both her eyes and Luke's grew comically large. In unison, they both asked each other, "What are you doing here?"

"Chaos brought me here."

"No, Chaos brought _me_ here."

"You're not supposed to be here."

"Neither are you!"

They kept speaking in unison, creeping me out and frustrating each other.

"Stop that!"

"No, you stop first!"

I finally had enough of being weirded out.

"Luke, Zoë, both of you shut up."

"But...!" They protested simultaneously. I glared at them, and any other protests died.

"Now, why don't you take turns, like they taught you in preschool?"

Zoë raised her hand slightly. "I did not attend a mortal preschool. Therefore, I do not know what you speak of."

I stared at her. "Then why are you raising your hand? That's something else they teach in preschool."

Zoë quickly retracted her hand.

I rolled my eyes. "Zoë already spoke, so you can share first, Luke. Try to keep it short and sweet."

Luke nodded and quickly told Zoë how Zeus banished him Elysium and he ended up in the Fields of Asphodel, where Chaos found him.

Zoë had a better reaction than I had anticipated: sympathy. She asked questions when necessary, and didn't poke the bear when Luke didn't want to share certain facts.

When it was her turn, Luke treated Zoë the same way. He was sympathetic while listening to her tell him how Zeus banished her from the stars, casting her into Tartarus, where after several years, she found both Chaos and me.

After both of them were finished, they looked at me, as if I was orchestrating the entire thing. Which, I guess I kinda was, but still.

I cleared my throat. "So... Let's eat some dinner?"

They nodded and started eating their food, Zoë with her burger, and Luke with a pepperoni pizza. I ordered a steak and a blue cherry coke before digging in too.

We were almost done with dinner when Chaos appeared at the door. He was dressed in a neat gray suit with a sapphire blue shirt beneath it. He clasped his hands together and waited for the crowd to settle and recognize his presence.

It only took a moment. Once one person realized Chaos was here, the news spread like wildfire, until everyone was silent.

"Hello everyone," Chaos greeted. "You all know me. But today, I have brought four guests to join our assorted family."

Everyone cheered. "I found all four in the pits of Tartarus. Two half bloods and two powerful primordials."

Everyone gasped.

"Which two primordials did you find in Tartarus?" A girl with purple skin asked.

Several people started to shout out possibilities. Most suggested Erebus and Tartarus. A few shouted out for Nyx or Hemera. No one mentioned Aether or Pontus.

Chaos raised his his hand and silence immediately returned. "No, it was none of the deities who you mentioned. The primordials that are now our guests here are Asther and Pontus!"

After a a brief moment, everyone cheered for the two. Chaos raised his hand for quiet again.

"Now, I also mentioned two half bloods. One a demigod, the other a demi-Titan. Would they like to come up and introduce themselves?"

Zoë and I reluctantly stood up. I kinda already introduced myself... Guess j was doing it again.

Chaos grinned at us once we were closer. "Everyone, I introduce to you your two new warriors! Perseus Jackson and Zoë Nightshade!"


	30. Chapter 30

**Hey guys! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! And, woah, this is chapter 30! :D Yay! 30 chapters! This is such an important milestone in this story! *starts to fake cry* I'd like to thank the academy! And all the little people! And, uh... The other academy? *stops fake crying* I didn't go to an academy, in case you couldn't tell. And I don't really know any little people. I know plenty of short people, though. ;) Anyways, getting off topic. What was the topic? Oh yeah! Lemme apologize real quick. I'm sorry for not having a good, trauma-inducing cliffhanger last chapter. I know you all cried a little to yourselves. ;) But in the rush for time, I figured you'd just have to learn to live without one for the moment. ;) Don't worry; that'll lovably never happen again. ;) Anyways, here's a wild disclaimer in its natural habitat! I own nothing, but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **PS: In case you can't tell, I'm in a pretty good mood. :) I'm not drunk or high or anything, so don't ask. I'm just happy. :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _Chaos grinned at us once we were closer. "Everyone, I introduce to you your two new warriors! Perseus Jackson and Zoë Nightshade!"_

(Not) surprisingly, everyone cheered. Zoë and I smiled, awkwardly waving to the diverse crowd.

"Hey," I greeted. "You guys kinda already met me."

Chaos frowned slightly and leaned down towards me. "Really? Why?"

I turned slightly red. "I, uh, was kinda sorta a little late."

Chaos stared at me. "How were you late? It's not even a minute walk from the rooms to here."

My face grew even more red. "I, um, was sleeping...?"

Zoë shook her head. "I woke him up, just like you told me to, Chaos."

I swore in my head. He must know that I wouldn't have gone back to sleep if I was told about food. What else could I use as an excuse?

I took a deep breath. "Yes, that's true. Zoë did wake me up. But after she left, these ninjas dropped from the ceiling. They were going to go assassinate the most powerful member of your army! That's what they told me. Through their ninja masks. Anyway, we had an epic ninja battle. After I defeated them all with my sweet Kung fu moves, I made them swear to leave and never return. Then I tidied up my room, cause I'm just borrowing it from you. I hurried down the hall to get some food and meet everyone, but I was a little late."

Chaos kept staring at me. I tried to resist the urge to fidget.

Finally, he spoke. "You walked the wrong way."

I nodded grimly. "I walked the wrong way." He didn't even ask it as a question. It was just there, a statement, and a true statement nonetheless.

Zoë snickered to herself, so being the very mature guy I am, I turned to her and stuck my tongue out at her. Since she is also very mature, she did the same back, while also scrunching up her face. I was about to retaliate, until Chaos spoke.

Gesturing to us, he announced, "Ladies and gentlemen, these are your two new warriors." He made a face at us in a teasing way, causing everyone to laugh, and Zoë and I to blush.

Chaos shooed us away, and we resumed our seats with Luke.

 **Ok guys, You don't have to tell me that was crap. It's 600 words total, including the beginning AN. But I had so much stuff to do (including homework, open house at school, homework, band practice, and homework. Did I mention homework?). So, I had a total of two hours to work on this. I usually shoot for four, maybe five total (in all four nights). But I had two, so this is crap and I'm really sorry guys. But it's better than nothing, right? Please don't hate me. :(**

 **Also, I'm going to have to move next update to Wednesday cause I can't update Friday. I have a band thing that goes until really late at night.**


	31. Chapter 31

**Hey guys! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! Again, I'm really sorry it was so short and crappy. I'm kinda amazed that no one even said that it was indeed super crappy. We were all thinking it though, right? What woukd have putting it in writing done? Anyways, I had a question on why not just forsake that update and post it later. Well, I told you guys that I always post every four days, unless I gave you notice. I didn't want to not post something, and then have everyone thinking I was in a coma or I died. Because honestly, anything can happen on any given day. My philosophy is that if I don't give you any message in advance, or even the day of, and I don't end up posting within all 24 hours of that day, something must've happened to me. Not to get all depressing on you guys or anything. I honestly don't plan on dying anytime soon. There's too many things I haven't done, too many places I haven't been, too many people I haven't met. Besides, on Saturday I have my first unofficial date (it's a school dance that a guy asked me to), and I'd hate to miss that because of something silly like death. ;) Enough talk about death and my personal life. Let's get to the important stuff— this chapter! :) First, the disclaimer. I own nothing, but please enjoy this chapter. :)**

 **Percy's POV (finally, on with the story!)**

 _Chaos shooed us away, and we resumed our seats with Luke._

Once Zoë wnd I sat down across each other, Luke eyed us with a mixture of suspicion and amusement. "What was that scene up there all about?"

Zoë frowned. "What scene?"

Luke grinned, his eyes losing most of the suspicion and becoming filled with amusement. "Oh, the scene where you two lovebirds teased each other by sticking your tongues out at the other."

Zoë and I both turned red. "I think I missed the part about us being 'lovebirds'."

"Same," I added.

Luke shrugged, eyes twinkling with amusement. "Alright, alright, I'll let it go."

He brought it up again a few hours later as we were sitting in my room. I saw sitting on the bed, while Luke was sitting on the floor. We were talking about random, trivial things, anything from our favorite movies to the best brands of beer.

Suddenly, Luke asked, "Do you have a crush on Zoë?"

Startled, I sputtered, trying to come up with something other than the truth. I finally managed to get out a weak, "Zoë who?"

Luke rolled his blue eyes. "Zoë Nightshade. You have a crush on her, don't you?" He said this so casually, as if discussing the weather.

I kept sputtering, my face red. "I-I don't... What are y-you... I-I... H-How...?"

Luke chuckled. "Dude, it's obvious. Any moron with a speck brains can tell that you like her."

I opened my mouth to argue, then deflated, letting out a sigh. "Is it really that obvious?"

Luke grinned. "Totally." Seeing my expression of horror and despair, he let the grin slip from his face. "Dude, it's not that obvious. I can tell because we're friends. And I had to study your body language back when we were enemies. It's kind of a second nature to me now."

I nodded miserably. "Do you think Zoë knows?"

He snorted, crossing his arms. "I highly doubt it."

"Really?" I dared get my hopes up. I didn't want to embarrass myself. What if she knew and she was just pretending to like me so she didn't hurt my feelings? What if—

Luke cut off my inner panics. "Yep."

"How can you be so sure?" His casual attitude towards a subject that had always scared the crap out of me astounded me.

He shrugged. "I just know."

I opened my mouth to keep this conversation going, wanting to ask every question on my mind until I was sure she didn't know. Then I realized that all Luke's answers were be simple and/or one-worded.

We sat in silence for another moment, me pondering my love life (or lack thereof) and Luke... I'm not exactly sure what he was doing. Is being Luke a valid answer?

The silence would've lasted forever for all I know if someone hadn't knocked on the door. I shot up off the bed and hurried to the door, trying to ignore Luke's raised eyebrow.

A short pink-skinned man was standing in the doorway once I answered the door. His skin was a light pink, not like the pink skin on some of the people in Guardians of the Galaxy.

"Are you... P-Perseus J-Jackson?" He stuttered out, glancing down at a card in his hand before saying my name.

I nodded. "I am. Why?"

The short man swallowed. "L-Lord Chaos r-requests your p-presence i-immediately."

"Ok." I turned back into the room to address Luke. "Come on, Luke, I—"

The short man interrupted me. "Alone." I noticed that he didn't stutter that time.

I frowned slightly, but nodded anyways. "Alright. Thank you. Are you going to show me where to go? I'm not exactly familiar with the layout of everything."

The pink skinned man frowned slightly back at me. "I suppose." He muttered to himself, "This puts a wrench in my perfect schedule..."

I retreated quickly into into my room and told Luke where I was going. He said he'd still until I got back, after which he'd head to his own room to sleep. I smiled, grateful for the support.

I found the pink skinned man waiting impatiently in the hallway. He tapped his watch when he saw me and barked, "Hurry, hurry! I don't have all day!"

He didn't give me a chance to give a sarcastically remark. The short man had already booked it down the hall.

I jogged after, silently wondering how a man with such shorts legs could be able to walk so quickly.

"How long have you lived here?" I tried asking the dwarf sized man once I caught up to him.

"That's classified," was all he said, staring down at a schedule in his hands.

"Oh... Well, my name is Percy. What's yours?"

"Classified."

"Really?" Had his parents actually named him Classified?

"That's classified."

I frowned but kept trying to make conversation with the stubborn man. I'd ask a question, which he always responded to with either "classified", or "that's classified".

Great conversationalist, the short pink-skinned man.

After a minute, we arrived at a door. "This is the door to the office of Lord Chaos. Inside is where you'll meet him. Knock on the door and do not enter until he calls you in," the man instructed. I nodded to show that i understood.

"Good. If you need anything, don't call me." With that, the short man thrned and jogged away.

Taking his advice, I knocked on Chaos's door. I waiting a minute in silence, debating whether or not I should knock again. Maybe he didn't hear me? But sure enough he did.

"Come in," Chaos called in a hard, emotionless voice. I gulped quickly before turning the door knob and walking into the room.

 **Hey guys! Next chapter will be posted Tuesday. I have homecoming this weekend and some random (yet no doubt tiring) thing Friday night, so I'm gonna take those two nights. Then I'll write on Thursdsy, Sunday, Mindsy, Thesday so you get the whole fours days. I'll try not to make a crap chapter. Sorry for all the time changes! Don't hate me please.**


	32. Chapter 32

**Hey guys! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! Again, sorry for the long wait! But I'm glad many of you said that you don't hate me for continuously changing the update days! I don't think I need to do that any time soon, but I'll let you know probably one chapter before. ;) Anyways, about homecoming! Yes, he did (finally) end up asking me, but only after I started the conversation. ;) And I didn't do anything stupid. And I don't plan on doing anything stupid until marriage. Cause I'm "old fashioned" like that. The homecoming dance itself sucked (there were too many people taking the term "inappropriate dancing" too far...) but i still kinda had fun because my date was really (uncharacteristically) sweet. He brought me flowers and everything. :)** **Anyways, on with the disclaimer! I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **Percy's POV**

" _Come in," Chaos called in a hard, emotionless voice. I gulped quickly before turning the door knob and walking into the room._

"You wanted to see me?" I asked nervously, cursing internally when my voice shook ever so slightly.

Chaos was sitting at his large desk. He was looking at a paper when i walked in, but he set that down and looked at me once I started speaking.

He nodded his head, then gestured to the chair in front of the desk. "Take a seat, Perseus."

I quickly examined the leather chair, making sure there weren't any hidden trap doors under it that send that person sitting to certain death. Or any stains in the leather that look like blood or urine. I didn't see any; hopefully before Chaos realized what I was doing, I sat down.

Given the amount of amusement sparkling in his dark eyes, he might've realized what I was doing. Or he found something else to make fun of about me. I'm not in not sure which would be more comforting.

"I'm surprised you arrived so quickly," Chaos said, the corners of his lips lifting up slightly. "Seeing as how you arrived so late to dinner, I thought you'd arrive later, not five minutes after I sent me messenger out."

I shrugged. "He showed me the way. And for a short man, he sure is fast. I was practically jogging just to keep up with him."

Chaos chuckled. "Yes, that was purposeful. I sent my faster messaged to fetch my slowest warrior, just to see which would prevail."

I chuckled too, until I realized something and frowned. "What do you mean, slowest warrior?"

The creator of the universe cleared his throat. "Yes, so, let's start talking about why I summoned you."

"Now wait a minute—"

"I have something very important to discuss with you, so if you'd please shut up... Thank you." He took a deep breath. "I have a proposition for you. One I hope you accept."

There was a moment of silence. Chaos was examining my face, no doubt taking in my expression of uncomfortable-ness. He sighed. "You can speak again, Perseus."

I breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank the gods. Do you know how hard that was? Geez, that took more self control than I thought i had!"

Chals rolled his eyes, letting out his own sigh. Except his was more of an exasperated one than a relieved one. I wonder why he was so exasperated.

Must've been that paperwork he was doing before I walked in.

"So, will you listen to my proposition?"

I shrugged. "Sure, why not."

Chaos smiled slightly. "Thank you. Now, don't interrupt. If you do, I don't know if I'll have the nerve to finish."

"Ok...?" By now, I was more than slightly suspicious.

Nodding, Chaos took a deep breath.

"Would you like to be my adopted son?"

I almost choked on my own spit. Even so, I was so shocked that I just sat there for a moment, jaw touching the seat of my leather chair.

Chals took my silence as rejection. "I mean, I know this is kinda sudden. But I've been looking for an heir for a long time, in case I fight a battle that turns out to be my last, or in case I need to waste a large amount of energy for an important reason. After i saw you try to sacrifice yourself to save the life of a woman you hadnt really known for all that long, including time in and out of Tartarus, I knew you must be the one I had been looking for."

 _The one_. That's what Annabeth had called me when we first met, back when we were twelve. For once, I didn't feel a terrible pain in my heart when I thought about her. The rusty, dull sword wasn't digging into my body. How odd.

Chaos kept talking through my internal musing. I tuned back in as he appeared to be wrapping up the rant. "I know you must have questions for me, and I don't blame hou. Heck, I wouldn't blame you if you wanted to think this over for a bit. I mean, the betrayal you must feel about your father is probably fresh in your mind, and I don't want to step in and intrude. In fact—"

Scrap what I said a minute ago; Chaos didn't appear to be stopping the rant any time soon. So I did what any impatient teenager would do; I interrupted him.

"Chaos, stop ranting." He obeyed, turning his dark-yet-multicolored gaze on me.

"Did you just interrupt me?" He sounded incredulous.

I nodded confidently, although deep inside I was shaking, praying he wouldn't kill me or something for the interruption.

For or a full minute, Chaos and I had a staring competition. All my nerves screamed at me to look away, beg for mercy, grovel on my knees, but some foolish sense of trust or complacency kept me from looking away.

Chaos finally blinked. "Why did you interrupt me? Especially after I told you not to." His voice had a mixture of sorrow, disappointment, and anger.

I took a deep breath, mentally preparing myself for what I was about to say and whatever reaction I'd get.

"If you're going to adopt a teenage boy, you have to know that we're pretty impatient. Especially me."


	33. Chapter 33

**Hi guys! How're you all doing? I hope you're all great. :) I don't have much to say, besides the normal. I do want to say to please not mind the spelling mistakes. Yes, I know there must be several in every chapter. I might've said that before, but the device i use to write my chapters is ancient. It's always glitching, shutting down randomly, and reloading the page before I can save my work. I try to go back and fix spelling mistakes, but the glitches sometimes happen, and then I'll forget what it was I was doing and it'll stay incorrect. So I apologize for the inconvenience. Alright, disclaimer! I own nothing, but please enjoy this chapter, spelling mistakes and all. ;)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _I took a deep breath, mentally preparing myself for what I was about to say and whatever reaction I'd get._

 _"If you're going to adopt a teenage boy, you have to know that we're pretty impatient. Especially me."_

Chaos stared at me, his jaw now touching the ground. It took him a moment to build up the strength to speak. "D-Does that m-mean...?"

I took another deep breath and smiled shakily. "I'll be your adopted son."

Chaos stared for another moment, still in shock, before his face erupted into a brilliant smile. Seeing his smile, mine became less shaky and more... Firm? Can a smile be firm?

We smiled at each other, glancing around out of the corners of our eyes after a moment, not quite sure what to do next. We both knew that the smiling was going on for far too long, but neither of us knew exactly how to stop.

Finally, Chaos slowly jerked his arms open. "Do you want to awkwardly hug now...?"

Not seeing a better option, I shrugged. "I suppose." Standing up, I walked around the desk to the other side where Chaos was standing, arms open. I chewed my lip slightly, asking myself if this was really happening. Then I stepped into Chaos's arms.

Saying the hug was awkward would be an understatement. At first, I didn't know what to do with my arms, and it didn't seem like Chaos did either. My arms hung loosely at my sides. Was I supposed to hug him back? What would I do with my hands then? I doubt my arms would be long enough to reach around Chaos's torso.

Chaos didnt know what to do with his hands. His arms were wrapped around me, hugging me, but his hands were just sitting there awkwardly. Especially because I had suspicions that they were really sweaty. After a second, Chaos turned a slightly uncomfortable hug into an incredibly awkward one by patting my back.

Being the socially-knowledgable teenage boy I am, I stood there, arms just hanging by my side, until I felt too compelled to do _something (_ as opposed to nothing). Finally, I let my arms circle around Chaos's torso (I was right; they didn't fit all the way around.). After another couple seconds, I decided to join in on the a the back-patting.

We stood in Chaos's office for a good solid minute (if not more), awkwardly hugging and patting each other's back. I think we were both praying something would happen that would cause us to break apart without hurting the other's feelings. Couldn't a phone at least vibrate? Of course not.

Chaos finally broke the tense atmosphere. "This is getting more uncomfortable every second."

"Agreed. Should we just end this now?"

Chaos let go of both me and a sigh of relief. "Thank the gods. I was worried about hurting your feelings by wanting to move on."

I laughed. "My feelings? I was worried about hurting yours!"

We both chuckled for a moment before an awkward silence threatened to envelope us again. To prevent that from happening, I tried to change the subject.

"So, as your adopted son, will I get cool powers?" I asked hopefully.

Chaos laughed. "Even if I say no, you already agreed to being my adoptive son!"

My response was a sad pout, followed by a protest of, "That's not fair!"

Chaos shrugged, grinning. "Life isn't fair."

I continued to pout.

The creator of the universe saw my sad face and was immediately gripped by horrible guilt at teasing me. (After he died of laughter at seeing me pout.) He rolled his eyes and told me, "Yes, you do get cool powers."

Id say that I was so excited I squealed, except I am a manly man, and manly men do not squeal.

Clearing my throat, I casually asked, "What cool powers do I get?" I gasped. "Could hour powers help me get did of the Black Heart?"

Chaos shook his head sadly. "I'm sorry, but no. The powers cannot help you get rid of your curse. They can, however, do many other things. You'll get most of the powers the twelve Olympians possess, along with the gift of creation from me. If something happens to me, you'll inherit more, along with the knowledge of how to use them. The powers you get now have to be taught to you."

I frowned when during the beginning of Chaos's little speech, before grinning at the end. "Cool! So I get a lot of powers. Wow."

Chaos rolled his eyes. "That's all you care about, isn't it?" He asked teasingly.

"Yep." After a second, I asked, "How do you officially adopt me? Is there a chant or a ceremony or...?"

Chaos grinned. "A valid question. To officially adopt you, we have to have another person draw up a paper. It can be as complicated as 'I (insert name here) officlally adopt (insert child's name here). I (insert child's name here) officially accept (insert name here) as my guardian.' Of course, we've had ones that are needlessly and extremely complicated."

"Who's drawing up our paper?"

Chaos took a moment to consider the question. "I believe I might ask Pontus. It has to be someone both you and I know, which he is. And he's less likely to write a twenty page essay that we have to read and sign. Compared to Aether, at least."

I nodded. "I think I get it now."

Chaos smiled. "I'm glad. It's getting late. We should get Pontus to draw up the papers tomorrow. It's been a long day."

"It sure has." I turned to go, walking to the door. "Thank you."

"No, thank you Percy. And allow me." With a wave of his hand, Chaos teleported me back into my room.

Luke fell off my bed in surprise. "Shit!" He swore loudly when I materialized two feet in front of him.

I couldn't help help but laugh. "Sorry, Luke. Chaos just teleported me back."

Luke swore again before catching his breath from the scare and straightening up. He cleared his throat slightly, trying to get rid of the hoarseness that followed screaming.

"What did Chaos want? He never calls people to his office during their free time before curfew."

I shrugged, suddenly uncomfortable. How do you tell someone that the creator of the universe wants to adopt you? Just drop it on them suddenly, or ease into it? How do you even ease into something like that?

"He just wanted to ask me something," I finally replied.

Luke frowned slightly in curiosity. "What'd he need to ask you?"

I opened my mouth to come up with a response, when i thought heard a sound in the hallway outside my door. Whispering urgently, I asked Luke, "Did you hear that?"

His frown deepened. "No."

Feeling foolish and paranoid, I tried to get rid of the thought of someone lurking behind my door. Instead of swinging the door open like my body itched for me to do, I kept talking with Luke.

"Sorry," I apologized. "I think I'm just kind of paranoid. Anyways, what were you saying?"

Luke shrugged. "It's fine. I had wanted to know what Chaos had asked you."

"Oh." I sighed, then decided to go with the sudden approach. "Chaos asked me... If I'd mind being his adopted son."

Clearly not expecting that bomb to be dropped, Luke's jaw fell to the floor. I didn't lay any attention to that though, because in the hallway, something clattered loudly to the ground right outside my bedroom door.


	34. Chapter 34

**Hey guys! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! :) im glad everyone (that reviewed) liked the chapter! Um... I really don't have anything else to say. Hm, this is new. Oh well. I'll cut to the chase and end my AN with everyone's favorite: a disclaimer! I own nothing, but please enjoy this chapter anyways. :) It'd make me oh so happy if you did.**

 **Percy's POV (recap)**

 _Clearly not expecting that bomb to be dropped, Luke's jaw fell to the floor. I didn't pay any attention to that though, because in the hallway, something clattered loudly to the ground right outside my bedroom door._

 **Zoë's POV (ooh, new POV! How scandalous! I bet no one saw this coming! ;D)**

* _previously in time_ *

I sighed to myself, sitting in my bedroom. The walls were a dark green, evergreen, with silver outlines. My bed was black with silver stitchings. It made my heart ache for home.

I had been staring out of my tiny window for at least a half an hour. The sun had already set, leaving only the twilight glow to barely illuminate everything. I could no longer see people walking by on the ground a couple stories away. Yet I was still staring off into space, imagining that it was day and I was watching people I knew and loved and missed walk by.

However, internally, I was struggling. Being here, where so many things were familiar and different, and so many people were familiar and different, was breaking my heart. How I missed my lady and my sisters. And none of my sisters were here. Why does Luke Castellan get to live here when none of my sisters do?

Suddenly, I jumped to my feet. Out loud, I scolded myself. "Stop it. You're going to tear yourself to pieces. Luke deserves to be here as much as anyone does. He's been through so much."

I needed something to get my mind off everything. Cookies immediately came to mind. My brain shrugged. _Why not_?

I was walking back from the dining hall with a platter of cookies when i heard a scream from across the hall. _Percy's room_.

Closing the door I had just opened to my room, I crossed the hallway in three quick steps. I crouched down and tried to peer through the keyhole, seeing as I didn't have a key to get it. And I certainly didn't want to knock if there was an assassin in there.

Through the wood of the door, I heard luke talking. "What did Chaos want? He never calls people to his office during their free time before curfew."

There was silence, the other person hesitiating in their response.

"He just wanted to ask me something," they finally replied. I recognized his voice. _Percy_. Chaos wanted to see him? At this hour? For what?

Luke asled his next question after a second's pause. "What'd he need to ask you?"

My legs started cramping up from squatting in front of Percy's door. I needed to stand up or move them or something. Quickly, unable to really control it, my legs straightened. I stood up so quickly that I lost my balance for a moment, and only regained it when my foot shot out to the side. I breathed a sigh of relief, but it was short lived. The floorboard I had put my foot on creaked loudly. I held my breath, hoping no one heard it.

From inside the room, Percy hissed, "Did you hear that?"

Curse my luck.

With no room for debate, Luke replied with a hard, "No."

Neither her one spoke for a moment before Percy apologized. "Sorry, I think I'm just kind of paranoid. Anyways, what were you saying?"

Luke seemed less frustrated after the apology. "It's fine. I had wanted to know what Chaos had asked you," he reminded Percy.

"Oh." He sighed loudly, seeming to prepare himself before he finally spoke. "Chaos asked me... If I'd mind being his adopted son."

My jaw fell to the floor, along with the metal cookie platter. Realizing what I had done, I tried to grab the platter before it hit the ground, but I had no such luck. The platter clattered to the floor, the metal ringing out against the wood with every bounce.

There was an uneasy, dead silence. Everything seemed to be holding its breath, waiting for someone to make the next move.

In hindsight, I should've ran. I should've grabbed the platter and sprinted across the hall to my room, or down the hall, or anywhere Percy wouldn't be able to see me from. Instead, I stood there like a deer caught in the headlights. Except the headlights of the car hadn't been turned on. You could hear the car coming, but how far was it?

Apparently, only a millisecond away. The door I crouched behind was flung open, Lercy standing there in its place. He had a sword in his hands, a common and boring bronze one.

 **Hey guys! I know that was a crap chapter and you're probably all like "WTF?! That's it for the next four days?!" And I don't blame you. I was actually planning on putting more but I had a major technological malfunction, and my sister was hogging the wifi, so my crap iPod couldn't do anything. So I'm really sorry that this chapter is so crappy. I'll try to get you a better one next time. Which reminds me... I won't be able to update again until Monday. I have a football game Friday night and those finish insanely late. So I am very sorry to everyone. Please try not to hate me! :(**


	35. Chapter 35

**Hey guys! Hows it going? I hope you're all doing awesome! :) Lets see, where was I going with this...? Oh yeah! I'm sorry about the "Lercy" typo last chapter! I accidentally write their ship name, I guess. Even if I don't ship it or even read their fanfiction... Sorry, no offense to anyone if that's offensive. Anyways, it was supposed to say Percy. My finger must've slipped when typing the P. Because on a small IPod touch screen, the P is close to the L. Sorry about that typo! Secondly, I can't say what that scream was yet. ;) It's a surprise for later. But let's just say that Percy didn't hear it because that's when Luke was swearing loudly. Ok? Everyone still slightly confused? Great. ;) I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter!**

 **Zoë's POV**

 _The door I crouched behind was flung open, Percy standing there in its place. He had a sword in his hands, a common and boring bronze one._

 **Percy's POV**

My eyes scanned the area, looking for an intruder. Instead, they rested on a figure crouched on the floor, clutching a silver platter to her chest.

"Zoë?" I lowered my sword slightly, unsure if it was just a trick. After being stuck and tortured in Tartarus for twenty years, the wariness doesn't just go away after your first home cooked meal back in civilization.

She he tried to clear her throat and appear casual, even though I caught her kneeling outside my bedroom door eavesdropping on a private conversation. "Oh, hello, Perseus."

I stared down at her. She didn't make a move to stand up. Probably because she would slice her own head open on my sword if she attempted to straighten up.

"What are you _doing_ , Zoë?" I asked in confusion and slight anger. I couldn't let my anger control me. I wouldn't let it. I couldn't.

Zoë coughed softly. "I heard a scream coming from the direction of your room. I thought you were in danger, so I rushed over from the door to my room to make sure you were okay."

"Why didn't you knock?"

"If you were being attacked by ninjas, I didn't want to scare them all away before I too could beat them up."

I stared at her for a second. She stared back. Finally, I lowered the sword and extended my hand for her to take. She took it and hopped to her feet.

Standing eye-to-eye (or more like eyes-to-chin, as I was slightly taller than her), I frowned down at Zoë. There was a flaw in her story. "I didn't hear a scream."

"Well, I did. Why else would I be crouched at your door?" She remarked, begining to get upset by my lack of belief in her.

"I don't know!" I exclaimed, starting to feel my blood pumping faster and my heart pounding. Oh no, oh no. Yet I heard myself keep speaking, adding to the argument. "Maybe you just wanted to lurk behind my door like a sneaky, untrusting, manipulative bitch!"

WHAT?! I didn't mean to say that! This isn't me talking! I would never say that! Especially not to her! Never to her!

Zoë either didn't hear my inner frustrations, or she chose to ignore them. Her eyes widened, tears gathering at the rims, before she quickly blinked them away. Then her beautiful dark eyes narrowed on my in anger.

"You know I wouldn't do that!" She yelled, getting really in-my-face about the whole thing. "Maybe you'd do that because that's just the kind of selfish, egotistical, jackass _man_ you are!" She spat the word 'man' out like it was the worst possible insult in the history of mankind. And knowing the ex-huntress, it probably was.

I wanted to just put my hands up in surrender and apologize. My hands did move, but to shove Zoë instead of surrender. She gasped, taking a step backwards before taking two towards me.

"You... You..." She struggled to spit out a word. Every time she said "you", she'd poke me in the chest, hard.

I smirked, egging her on. "I what?" I asked innocently.

She exploded. "You fucking bastard!" She screamed. "I hate you! I wish you died in Tartarus!"

Her words physically wounded me. I felt like I was punched in a gut. By Thor's hammer. I stumbled backwards a bit, back into my room. My face must've shown my shock and hurt, because Zoë's face softened every so slightly as she began to realize what she just said.

"Perseus, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to-"

"Save it," I cut her off coldly. I regained my footing and stood in front of her. My eyes blazed with anger. "I'm just a stupid male. A waste of space. Why waste your apologies too?"

My heart and my head were hurting. I couldn't get Zoë's words out of my head. " _I hate you! I wish you died in Tartarus!"_ I couldn't believe I had a crush on her. I couldn't believe I loved her.

My blood was rushing faster than it had any time before. My heart was pumping. I knew I was either about to have a heart attack, or something bad was going to happen. I didn't care.

" _I hate you!"_

Suddenly, the hallway was ablaze with blue fire. My pumping blood slowed down ever so slightly, to the level it was at before Zoë's cruel words. Anger still made my mind clouded. I stood in the doorway to my room, blocking access for anyone to enter. Including Zoë, whose back was practically against the flames.

Once the fire started, Zoë tried to push past me and get into my room. There was no chance shed be able to get to her own. "Perseus! Perseus, I'm sorry! Please, please let me in!"

Behind me, Luke was yelling. He alternated between cussing loudly, asking me what had just happened, and telling me to let Zoë in before she died.

My eyes kept staring into the blue flames, watching them blaze in the middle of the hallway. I couldn't move my body. All I could do was keep staring into the flames, the hypnotizing, paralyzing flames.

Distantly, I felt Luke grab my shoulder and pull me out of the way. Zoë rushed inside after me, her face red from the exposure to the fire. She was drenched in sweat and breathing heavily. Her beautiful skin was marred by a streak of soot on her cheek.

I heard Luke vaguely ask her if she was okay. I saw her dark hair bob up and down twice, signaling that she's fine. Then she collapsed in a heap on the ground, not even making it onto my bed or anything.

My eyes returned to the blue flames, briefly catching a glimpse of a panicked Luke trying to revive Zoë. It was my fault that she was exposed to those flames. My fault that she coukdnt get inside. My fault that she fainted on the hard floor. My fault.

All because I possess the Black Heart.

And I can still hurt her with it. The anger was more than present in me, flowing in my veins and clouding all logic. All I knew was that I had to leave in order to make everyone was safe.

I bolted into the blue flames.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Luke try to run after me until he realized I was heading for the raging fire. Instead, he stood behind in the doorway, screaming bloody murder and telling me not to jump into the fire or else I'll die. I honestly didn't care; if it kept everyone safe, I would be more than happy.

When I reached the flames, however, they parted like they were the Red Sea and i was Moses. Luke noticed this and tried to run after me again, but as soon as I passed, the flames closed back up. Luke had to return to his original spot in the doorway, still yelling bloody murder. I sprinted away down the hall, not once looking back.

Finally, I found a door that led outside. I burst through it, not noticing that the flames didn't follow.

I found myself standing on a large balcony. It was covered with trees and bushes and plants of all kinds, sprinkled with benches and chairs. There was a fountain in the middle, water twinkling merrily. The sky was darkening, already a good amount of stars dusting the night sky.

Energy beginning to wane from my mad escape, I threw my body down on one of the stone benches. My back slouched, my head in my hands, I started to sob.

Soft footprints behind me and a gentle voice alerted me to another presence on the garden-like balcony. "Perseus? Or do you prefer Raven?"


	36. Chapter 36

**Hey guys! How's it going? Ok, first things first, I have an important message. IMPORTANT MESSAGE. READ THIS (IF YOU USUALLY IGNORE MY A.N.)!** **IMPORTANT MESSAGE. I'm not going to be able to update again until... Wednesday of next week. I'm busy on Saturday, so I'll need an extra day to work on this so serous chapter! ;) I bet not everyone saw this, so I'll try to have an AN at the bottom of the chapter. For the slackers. ;) Anyways, thanks for all the reviews last chapter! Woah, I got seven in the first day! That's crazy. :) You people are off the wall insane. ;) Quick clarifying thing: Percy's codename is Raven, decided upon as of chapter 28. You can go back to that chapter if you're confused or you think I'm a liar! Except I hope it's not the latter. ;) Ok, I think that's everything that I needed to go over. I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _Soft footprints behind me and a gentle voice alerted me to another presence on the garden-like balcony. "Perseus? Or do you prefer Raven?"_

I didnt lift my head from my hands to look at the newcomer. "I do believe I made everyone swear not to call me Perseus or Percy."

"My apologies." She didn't sound very sorry.

I didnt reply. Instead I sat on my stone bench, sobbing silently into my hands. I felt a presence next to me; the girl sat down on the other side of the bench next to me. I tried to still the shaking of my body. I'm still a leader. No one can see me be weak.

Neither of of us moved. After a moment, she said, "Raven, I believe it is common curtesy to look at a person when they talk to you."

Internally, I debated whether or not to look at her. My brain finally said, "screw it" and told me to just look at her.

I turned my tear-stained face to look at the cloaked girl from the dining hall earlier. I think she was looking back at me, because the hood of her cloak was opened towards me.

A worried voice resonated from within the hood. "You want to talk about it?"

I turned my head away from her and put it back in my hands. "No."

Even without looking, I knew she was shrugging my comment off. "It wouldn't have anything to do with that freak fire in the hallway, would it?"

My body tensed slightly, even as I cursed myself for doing so. "No."

She shrugged it off again. "You don't know anything about the cause of that, do you?"

" _No_."

"I could've sworn I saw you—"

"Leave me alone!" I exclaimed, jumping to my feet and glaring down at her. She flinched slightly, which made me feel kind of bad for yelling at her. Quieter, I asked, "Why are you pushing me to find out the answers? I don't even know who you are. I don't know your codename, let alone your real name."

She nodded her head slowly. "It's fine. I understand. You've had a tough day; anyone would be ready to snap."

"As for your codename? Can I have that information please?"

She nodded again, slightly faster this time. "My codename is Black Diamond, but people have taken to calling me simply Diamond."

I nodded and started pacing across the balcony in front of the bench. "How did you know I was here, Diamond?"

She hesitated slightly. "I was actually going to seek you out. But then the hallway erupted into flames, so I decided to stop walking. That's when I saw you sprinting away through the flames without being touched. I followed you, still hoping to seek you out."

"Why didn't the flames burn you?" I asked, stopping my pacing in order to look at her.

Diamond fidgeted slightly before sighing. "Hades has a blessing that he puts on everyone that make it Elysium. If they try for rebirth, whatever killed them in their previous life will not kill them in the next."

I gasped slightly. "You're a human? And you've been to Elysium?" I hesitated. "How long ago was it?"

Diamond sighed. "Yes, I am a human. I have been to Elysium. I was there about twenty five years ago. Give or take a few."

My heart gasped. My brain told it to get a grip before it gave me a heart attack. "Did... Do you happen to remember seeing specific people there? Like a b-blonde haired girl with p-princess curls and g-gray eyes that are beautiful yet intimidating? She probably would've worn an orange t-shirt with a Pegasus on it. Along with some jean shirts and beat up sneakers, of course. And—"

"Raven," Diamond cut me off. "You're talking about Annabeth."

I stiffened, trying to prevent memories from flooding my brain. I couldn't lose it again in front of this girl. Even as I pushed back all the flashbacks, the name echoed in my mind. _Annabeth_.

Unable to hold up my body any longer, I fell to my knees, my top half slouched awkwardly over the bench. I choked back sobs.

"Y-y-yes," I managed to spit out. Diamond patted my back slightly, trying to comfort me. It made me want to cry even more.

After a moment, Diamond whispered, "I did see her."

I sat bolt upright. "Y-you did?" I stuttered, barely being able to contain my emotions.

She nodded. "I did."

"W-what was she doing? Was she a-alone? H-how did she seem? Did she look h-happy?"

"She was talking to a blonde man, gesturing wildly with her hands before hugging him. She seemed happy, although I did not speak with her. Unfortunately."

I frowned. "Unfortunately?" I repeated.

"Unfortunately for you," Diamond quickly answered. "Because you wanted information."

The frown remained on my face. "But you wouldn't have known her then. How would you have known to speak with her."

Diamond hesitated before attempting to change the subject. "It's too bad Annabeth went for rebirth. I can understand your devastation."

My frown deepened. "I never said I was devastated. Or that she went for rebirth."

Diamond clapped a hand over her mouth, muffling a small string of curses.

I stepped closer to her. "You're a demigod, aren't you?"

Her head bobbed up and down, almost against her will.

"Greek or Roman?"

Her hand remained glued over her mouth, but I heard a muffled response. "Greek."

I hesitated. All the signs pointed to this...

"I knew you, didn't I?"

She nodded again, in the same seemingly forced manner. I didn't force her though.

I was past the point of no return. Thinking I knew who was behind the hood, I stood in front of Diamond. Slowly, my hands reached forward and pulled the hood back.

 **Hello! I gave you guys a wonderful cliffie, right? But that's not what I'm here to talk about. I'm updating next on Wednesday. Not sure what date that is. But Wednesday! I have a band performance tomorrow (Saturday) all day long. So I'll be too exhausted to write tomorrow night. That's why I'll need the extra day. I gave you guys a wonderful cliffie though! :) Tell me who you think it is in the reviews! Maybe you're right! ;) See you Wednesday! (Not literally)**


	37. Chapter 37

**Hey guys! How's it going? Hope you're all doing awesome! :) Thanks so much for all the reviews last chapter! Due to some funky glitch, I couldnt read for a couple days. Which was oh so sad because I really wanted to know what you said! And I knew you'd obviously tell me if I screwed up. ;) But I have so bad news. Same bad news as last chapter, actually. I have to once again change the update day.** I'm going to update again on Tuesday **. Yes, I know that's a long time away from the day I posted this (Wednesday). I'm very sorry. But I have a football game Friday night which doesn't end until really late, and then on Saturday I have a big marching band parade/competition/festival. We only do the one competition though; we're not a competitive band (thank goodness). Again, sorry for the lateness of the next update, but it can't be helped. :( My apologies. Anyways, disclaimer time! So you can find out for real who the mystery person is! I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _I was past the point of no return. Thinking I knew who was behind the hood, I stood in front of Diamond. Slowly, my hands reached forward and pulled the hood back._

"Hey, Percy," she whispered, her brown eyes sparkling with unshed tears.

"Bianca," I breathed before enveloping her in a tight hug. **(AN: Several people got it! Congrats!)** "I thought you were dead," I mumbled into her ear.

Her cloaked body trembled in my arms. "I know. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"When the robot malfunctioned..."

"I know." She sniffed. "The short-circuiting electronics caused a mechanical fire. That's what killed me."

I sniffled a little too. "I-I thought you went for rebirth. Nico—"

"I tried for rebirth," Bianca cut me off, pulling away. "But I was stopped. Zeus sent Hermes to send a message. The King of the Gods didn't want any demigod from Elysium to go for rebirth. In case of another war or battle, Zeus wanted to temporarily return those spirits to life so they could fight for him. Die for him. But not live another life and attempt to reach the Isles of the Blessed, because what if they weren't a demigod? Zeus would lose his indestructible army. So I was trapped. Until Chaos came and saved me from a life of servitude and pain."

"Zeus ruined everything," I spat. "Everyone I've talked to that had died was cursed because of Zeus. Luke was almost put in the Fields of Punishment. Zoë was cast into Tartarus. You were trapped."

"And you?" Bianca asked softly.

"Tortured in Tartarus," I sighed. "For twenty years."

She wrapped me in a hug this time. "I'm sorry Percy. I'm sorry."

I gently pulled away. "I'm fine." I didn't meet her eyes.

"What aren't you telling me?"

"Nothing," I answered quickly. Too quickly.

"Percy, you're not a very good liar."

I sighed, relenting. "Poseidon disowned me. And he's the one that cast me into Tartarus."

Bianca gasped. "Oh Percy! That's horrible! Do your water powers still work?"

I nodded. "Not as well, but they do work. I don't ever want to use them uagain though. They remind me too much of the bastard that helped give me life."

"Percy," Bianca scolded lightly. "How will you defend yourself then? I watched how you fought after my death. You're all the rage in Elysium. But you used your sword skills _and_ your powers to defeat your enemies. What will you do without the powers?"

Chewing the the inside of my cheek, I mumbled something softly.

"I can't hear you."

"I'm getting new powers," I spoke louder and slower.

She frowned. "How? Why? From?"

I gulped. "Uh, Chaos is giving them to me."

"Why?"

"Cause he feels like it?" I supplied weakly. Bianca didn't even dignify that with a response; she just shot me a look.

"Uh, I don't know why...?"

The he look turned into a terrifying glare that she could've only learned from other deceased hunters from Elysium.

"Fine! Fine," I yelped, anything to stop that glare. "I'm sorry." Under my breath, I muttered, "Why do you have to be so scary?"

Bianca must've heard me, because she kept her glare fixed in my direction.

"I'll tell you only if you stop glaring at me!"

She seemed to debate with herself internally. Finally, the terrifying glare slowly retreated into an expectant stare. "Fine. I'm waiting."

I wanted to repeat the "why do you have to be so scary" comment from a second ago, but Bianca kinda scares me now. I didn't want her to beat me up or something. Who knows? She's officially one of the scary hunters now.

Instead of poking the bear, I exhaled. "I'm getting new powers from Chaos because... He's adopting me."

Much to my surprise, Bianca didn't look overwhelmed with shock like Luke and Zoë had been. Heck, I was more surprised then she was. The ex-huntress's eyes widened slightly once I finally delivered the news, but then she grinned.

"I was wondering when that old man would finally find an heir! I'm glad it's you, Percy."

Slightly stunned by her comment, I managed to ask, "Can you call me Raven, please? I don't want any reminders of the person I used to be."

Bianca nodded. "Of course. In public, call me Diamond. In private, however, either is fine." She smiled. "Come on, I think your friends are looking for you."

"How can you tell?" Did she get new powers too?

Bianca smirked. "Shadow powers, remember? I can tell they're looking everywhere for you. Now, lets go before they start thinking you've been kidnapped again."

 **Again, next update is Tuesday. Don't forget and expect the next chapter on Sunday!**


	38. Chapter 38

**Hey guys! I have returned! :) It was a long wait, I know. You all must've been miserable from the lack of my wonderous cliffhangers. ;) Enough teasing (that was a joke, guys, the cliffhanger thing. Laugh a little!). Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! I got way over three, and that's always my goal. Three, I'll be happy. Over three, I'll be super happy. :) So thanks! I don't have much else to say... Except this: I own nothing, but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _Bianca smirked. "Shadow powers, remember? I can tell they're looking everywhere for you. Now, lets go before they start thinking you've been kidnapped again."_

I followed Bianca through the hallways. If it wasn't for her, I would've gotten lost twenty times over. I had no clue where I was or where I was going. Looking back, I could barely even remember how I had gotten to the garden balcony.

Every hallway we turned down had scorch marks along the walls. The carpets were all singed black. The few picture frames and Windows had soot along their frames.

I stopped in the middle of a hallway, struck by the appearance of a portrait. The bottom half was peeling from an intense heat, the top part blackened from smoky residue. I could barely even tell that it was a portrait of a woman.

I reached out a hand to touch the ruined painting. "D-did I really do th-this?"

I could sense Bianca standing next to me without turning my head to look at her. "It wasn't you," she answered softly. "It was that terrible heart that you've been cursed with. Not you."

We stared at the painting for another minute before Bianca gently tried to coax my away. "Come on Percy. We have a couple more hallways to get through."

Bianca started walking. I cast one more look at the painting. "The black heart might've started this, but I cooperated. This is my fault." I looked into what i thought were the woman's eyes. "I'm sorry," I whispered before I ducked my head and ran after Bianca. I couldn't afford to get lost.

I managed to not get lost in the last couple of hallways that we traveled through. Bianca had already thrown up her hood by the time we reached my hallway. It looked worse than all the other hallways, and that's saying something.

The carpet was burned to a crisp, crunching as my feet stepped down on it. The walls painted black (not by the Rolling Stones) with something uglier than paint. Even the ceiling was touched by the destruction, now a smoky gray color.

I didn't realize i had stopped walking until Bianca ushered me forwards, trying to drag me through the destroyed hall.

I didn't realize my eyes were tearing up until my hand instinctively shot up to wipe the tears away.

Bianca led to closer to a series of doors, all burned black. The numbers were barely visible. "Can you tell which one is yours?"

I didnt answer her; I kept walking by her halted figure.

"Raven? Raven!" I could hear Bianca hurrying after me, shouting out my code name. I didn't stop walking, knowing that if I stopped moving and fully contemplated what I did, I wouldn't be able to stop it from killing me.

My feet stopped moving a moment later. I lifted my head from the floor to face the door in front of me. _This must be my door. Or else my feet wouldn't have taken me here._ It was so hard to tell. They were all the same burned black.

Bianca jogged up beside me. "Raven? Raven, are you okay? You're acting strangely all of a sudden." She sent a searching gaze out to me, but I avoided her dark eyes.

"This is it," I told her simply, not moving a muscle other than the ones in my jaw. Bianca looked at me once more before knocking on the door.

Luke opened it. He saw Bisnca first, as she was the one that knocked. I was standing slightly behind her and to the left.

"Look, I'm sorry, but we haven't found him yet either. You can head back to whatever search party you're a part of. We–"

Luke caught sight of me standing slightly behind Bianca. "Percy?" He asked. Without waiting for an answer, he enveloped me in an awkward man hug. I stood there stiffly, trying not to crumble into a bunch of broken pieces.

Luke let me go a second later, the tips of his ears pink. "Come on in. Zoë is across the hall in her room, managing some of the search parties. I'll go get her."

"No, I'll do it," I interrupted him, putting a hand on Luke's chest to stop him.

He he looked at me strangely, as did Bianca. Not taking into account their opinions, I turned around to head across the hall.

Bianca grabbed my shoulder to stop me. She leaned closer to whisper in my was. "Is that such a good idea, Percy? Can you handle yourself? I don't want you to lose it again."

I brushed her off. "I'll be fine, Diamond. You and Luke can wait inside. I'll be back." Without waiting for a reply, I walked away across the hall.

As I knocked on Zoë's door, I heard my door click shut behind me. Luke and Bianca must've gone inside. Although I had no doubt that they'd find a way to watch me. Which was why I couldn't run, as much as I wanted to.

I waited a moment for Zoë to open the door. She didn't. I knocked again. Another moment passed. I knocked again. This continued until I gave up on the waiting and continuously kept knocking on her door. I didn't say anything, like "open the door". I just stood there silently knocking on the door.

After what felt like ages, the door swung open as my fist went to keep pounding it.


	39. Chapter 39

**Hey guys! How's it going? Hope you're all doing well! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! :) Quick question: what's senpai? Someone mentioned it several times, but I do not know what it is. Sorry! I'm not a big YouTube or buzzfeed or whatever fan. Is buzzfeed still cool? Oh well. Also, I know Percy isn't very OOC or dark yet. But just you wait. Hang on, ok? I promise I'll do my best to make him darker. And he's obviously going to be OOC if he's dark. Rick's Percy isn't an evil murderer. (Or is he...?) One last announcement before the disclaimer! I have to update again on Thursday. I won't be able to work on this due to Halloween on Monday. I'll be trick or treating! (Yes, high schoolers can go trick or treating. Cause it's fun. And sugar is more amazing than drugs.) So, next update is Thursday. There'll be a reminder at the bottom of this chapter too for the slackers. ;) I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter.**

 **Percy's POV**

 _After what felt like ages, the door swung open as my fist went to keep pounding it._

"I'm sorry, but I'm busy right now! Leave me alone!" Zoë yelled, barely sticking her head out of the door. She moved to close it, but I stuck my foot in the door to stop her.

In case you've never had the pleasure of doing that, it really hurts. Especially if the person trying to close the door doesn't realize your foot is in it, and she keeps trying to slam it closed. It's not pleasant.

"Zoë, it's me! It's me, it's me, it's me. And you're going to break my foot if you keep trying to crush it in your door," I exclaimed, my voice squeaking out due to the pretty intense pain.

Zoë froze, stared at my face, then opened the door. "Come in."

I managed to hobble inside. I had just taken a seat on Zoë's bed when she exploded. ( **Minor swearing ahead)**

Red faced, she glared at me through her tears and yelled, "What the hell did you think you were doing? First your damn cursed heart tries to kill me, then you sprint away into the bloody flames! What the hell were you trying to do? Kill yourself?!"

I tried to answer her rhetorical question, but she hadn't finished her rant.

"Then you disappear for two and a half freaking hours! What the he'll were we supposed to think? Luke thought you were going to jump off a damn balcony or something, and knowing the idiot you are, you probably would!"

"Zoë," I interrupted, barely managing to keep a straight face.

"What?" She snapped, scowling murderously at me.

I took a deep breath and tried to remain neutral. "Do you need to visit the dam snack bar?"

There was a moment of dead silence. I quickly gave a mental apology to Chaos for getting killed only a few hours after agreeing to be his adopted son and heir. I chuckled to myself. It was so worth it though.

" _What?_ " Zoë hissed.

"The dam snack bar," I repeated, somehow not dissolving into giggles. "Do you need to visit it?"

Zoë blinked at me for a moment before she turned on her heel and stalked away. "I just can't anymore. You're such a... A... Ugh!" She threw her hands up in the air, then walked out of her room, slamming the door behind her.

I sat alone on Zoë's bed. _Do I leave, or do I just sit here? Will it be awkward when she comes back? If I leave, would that make it even more awkward? Where'd she even storm off to?_

I sat sat there for a moment before I went to the door and looked out the peephole. I saw Zoë gesturing wildly in the hallway, talking to Luke. Bianca was there, but she had her hood up, concealing her identity.

Frowning, I walked back to Zoë's bed and laid down on the silvery sheets. I clearly couldn't go out that door; Zoë would kill me for sure. Or worse, castrate me!

How else to escape? The only exit would be the windows, which are impossibly small. Guess this is how I die. Again, I'm sorry Chaos.

Suddenly, Chaos was standing in Zoë's room. He stared at me and frowned. "Percy?"

I stared back, also frowning. "Chaos? What're you doing here?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing. Isn't this Zoë's room?"

I nodded. "Yeah. After I almost killed her and ran off, I guess she freaked out. So when I returned a couple hours later, she started yelling at me. I, uh, couldn't remain serious, and now she's outside in the hallway probably asking Luke and Diamond for murder schemes."

Chaos nodded in understanding. "That makes sense. I heard someone frequently calling my name in prayer and came to see what it was. I was afraid someone was being assassinated or something. Now I see that my fears were correct, because my onkh heir is about to be killed."

"Or castrated," I added unhelpfully. "I think that's also one of her options, except that one is for if she decides to go with torture."

Chaos stared at me. "Yes, that makes me feel so much better," he deadpanned. I smiled and flashed him a thumbs up.

I hesre a shouted exclamation from the hallway. "I think she's coming back!" I yelped. "Can you help me escape while also helping me keep all my parts?"

The creator of the universe frowned. "Id rather not get in the middle of all this..."

I scowled at him. "Fine. Just ignore my screams of pain echoing down the hallways, then."

Chaos sighed. "Alright. Quick!" He grabbed my shoulder and teleported us away just as I saw the doorknob turn.

We appeared in Chaos's office.

"Thanks, dad," I told him before I realized what I said. "I meant Chaos!"

The creator was frozen in place. "Actually," he whispered, "I didn't mind the 'dad' slip."

I gave him a small, shaky smile. "Ok... Dad...?"

Chaos returned the nervous smile. We stared at each other for a moment before we both looked away at the same time.

Chaos took a deep breath after our moment of quiet. "Percy, are you ready to begin your training?"

"Training?" I frowned. "Training for what?"

Chaos grinned. "You're going to be my heir and eventually my successor. But for now, you're also a soldier in my army, albeit a very powerful and important one. You have to learn how to fight and how to use your powers. Especially if you're going to overthrow Zeus and those are pathetic excuses of gods."

My smile began slightly more sinister and definitely stronger. "Let's get started."

 **Hey guys! Quick thing: I'm going to update on Thursday instead of Wesnesday due to Halloween! I left the same message in the first AN, but I don't think everyone saw it. So here it is again! Anyways, have a happy Halloween on Monday! ¡Feliz día de los muertos tambien! (Hope I spelt all that right! It's supposed to say happy day of the dead also!) Stay safe guys!**


	40. Chapter 40

**Hey guys! Hope you all had a great Halloween! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! :) Thanks to the people that clarified what senpai means! Also, even if I kill Nico and Will, they can still be together in Elysium! Percy has no real problem with Hades, does he? Just most of the Olympians and their pawns. (I also ship Solangelo, so I'll try not to break them up. They're just so adorable!) on a completely unrelated note, 50000 words is not overkill for a set up. Are you kidding me? (Okay, it's a little overkill, I'll admit it. I'm still trying to work on cutting to the chase of things. I have a bad case of TMI, as my old writing teacher used to say.) I think that's about all I have to say. Oh! I also have to push the update day to Tuesday. Sorry! I have another football on Friday, so I can't write. :( So sorry. I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter!**

 **Percy's POV**

 _My smile began slightly more sinister and definitely stronger. "Let's get started."_

Two years passed. I spent every single one of those days training and struggling to get better. Chaos would instruct me on how to be a leader, how to fight like one of his soldiers, how to be better than Percy Jackson. Most people stopped calling me Percy, and would only call me Raven. (At least, from what I knew.) I didn't even think the new recruits knew my given name.

Zoë and I really only saw each other in passing during those two years. Her training was much different than mine, and mine was much more intense than anyone else's. Being the heir to Chaos meant that had to be able to physically and emotionally accept new powers, as well as training to someday lead the army.

It was exhausting.

Within those two years, Luke became my best friend. He was able to convince Chaos that I needed a body guard to keep away assassins. Chaos finally caved when Luke brought up the incident that happened when I had first arrived. (The hallways still had a smoky scent to them, no matter how much celestial Frebreze the primordial used. Some of the ceilings were still dusted with dark soot. I don't blame Chaos for being cautious.)

Everyday was the same for two long years.

Wake up. Get breakfast. Begin training. Have lunch six hours later at noon. Keep training. Have dinner six hours later. There were optional "fun" activities afterwards, but I never once went to them. I was either too exhausted, or I had too much to do. Mostly, I continued to train late into the night. Even after the arena was closed for the night, I would practice in my room. Sword fighting, spell casting, power using.

"Focus!" Luke barked in front of me. I was drenched in sweat. Somehow, i managed to look at him. "Stop slacking! You're never going to get it right if you don't focus!"

Legs slightly spread apart, wearing old-man shoes on feet, I struggled to summon energy spheres in my hands. **(AN: Anyone know the _old-man shoes_ reference? It's to an awesome movie.) **

I failed, only managing to conjure a spark before it fizzled out.

"Again!"

The spark turned into a miniature energy sphere before I ended up dropping it.

"Again!"

"Again!"

"Again!"

I threw my hands out in front of me, frustrated and fed up with everything. I had been doing the same thing for two years. I could do everything else; why not this?! It made me so mad, so _furious_...

"Stop! Percy, stop! _Stop_!" Luke yelled. I froze. If he was using my real name, something was going on.

I stared at him intensely, green eyes on blue. Luke slowly raised his hands in a sign of surrender.

"That's you, right? You're Raven, heir of Chaos. Right?" He asked, cautious.

I managed to to jerk my head up and down. When did my muscles get so stiff?

Luke smiled, although it seemed slightly nervous. "Good. Now I want you to slowly lower your hands. I'm not the enemy. No one here is the enemy."

My heart seemed to skip a beat as I looked down at my hands in dread. Sure enough, they were engulfed in blue flames. The flames were pointing towards Luke.

Immediately, I dropped my hands to my sides. The flames disappeared from my fingers. I know he was trying to be discreet, but I saw Luke breathe a sigh of relief.

Feeling slightly sick, I teleported myself to the balcony that I went to after my first episode. The trees and other vegetation were still full of life, although this was a few generation of plants.

Once my my body has finally gathered together, I strode past the line of benches dotted with trees and heading for the back wall. I sat down, leaning against the bricks. Pulling my head between my knees in a stable position, I tried to force myself not to cry.

The heart had indeed gotten worse since I realized I had it. I'd always lose control her the smallest things, anything as insignificant as the amount of mashed potatoes on my dinner plate. I tried to reign it in, I honestly did, but...

I failed each and every time.

My body shook as I tried to repress the sobs threatening to erupt. I was a failure. Each and every time...

I was sitting against the back wall, mostly hidden behind shrugs, when I heard the door swing open and footsteps echo in the otherwise-silent air.

Someone was coming.

I tried to listen intently to the sound of the shoes hitting the pavement. The footsteps sounded feminine, but I couldn't tell for certain.

At least, not until a beautiful noise filled the air. Was that... _Singing_?

 **Hey guys! Sorry for the short chapter but I had a ton of school work to do this week. Next update is Tuesday. Explanation is in the AN at the top of the page. Thanks!**


	41. Chapter 41

**Hey guys! Woah, thanks for all the reviews last chapter! I have to say that I'm extremely impressed that everyone (that guessed) got the movie reference right! It was indeed the Sorcerer's Apprentice, one of my all time favorites! :) I said that reference around some friends (not my best friends, just some regular friends) and none of them got it! It blew my mind, but then i figured that maybe it's not that popular after all. You guys proved me wrong! (Thanks for that.) Nick Cage is also one of my top few favorite actors. I really love his National Treasure movies, and his role as the Ghost Rider is pretty awesome. Of course, let's not forget Sorcerer's Apprentice! What about you guys? What's your favorite Nick Cage movie? Anyways, lets got on with the chapter! After all, you guys had to wait an extra day for it due to the football game! I own nothing, but please enjoy this chapter! :) You guys rock.**

 **Percy's POV**

 _I tried to listen intently to the sound of the shoes hitting the pavement. The footsteps sounded feminine, but I couldn't tell for certain._

 _At least, not until a beautiful noise filled the air. Was that... Singing?_

Yes, yes it was.

In an obviously female voice, someone was singing a song I vaguely remembered. Eventually, the lyrics clicked with a distant memory in my mind. _Breathe (2 AM)_ by Anna Nalick. Both my mother and... _Annabeth_ used to like this song. Both strong, independent women... Both taken from me with no warning.

In a melodious voice, the singer sang the lyrics so softly at first before gaining volume (and, seemingly, confidence as well).

 _"2 AM and she calls me 'cause I'm still awake,  
"Can you help me unravel my latest mistake?,  
I don't love him. Winter just wasn't my season"  
Yeah we walk through the doors, so accusing their eyes  
Like they have any right at all to criticize,  
Hypocrites. You're all here for the very same reason_

 _'Cause you can't jump the track, we're like cars on a cable  
And life's like an hourglass, glued to the table  
No one can find the rewind button, girl.  
So cradle your head in your hands  
And breathe... just breathe,  
Oh breathe, just breathe_

 _May he turned 21 on the base at Fort Bliss  
"Just a day" he said down to the flask in his fist,  
"Ain't been sober, since maybe October of last year."  
Here in town you can tell he's been down for a while,  
But, my God, it's so beautiful when the boy smiles,  
Wanna hold him. Maybe I'll just sing about it._

 _Cause you can't jump the track, we're like cars on a cable,  
And life's like an hourglass, glued to the table.  
No one can find the rewind button, boys,  
So cradle your head in your hands,  
And breathe... just breathe,  
Oh breathe, just breathe_

 _There's a light at each end of this tunnel,  
You shout 'cause you're just as far in as you'll ever be out  
And these mistakes you've made, you'll just make them again  
If you'd only try turning around._

 _2 AM and I'm still awake, writing a song  
If I get it all down on paper, it's no longer inside of me,  
Threatening the life it belongs to  
And I feel like I'm naked in front of the crowd  
Cause these words are my diary, screaming out loud  
And I know that you'll use them, however you want to_

 _But you can't jump the track, we're like cars on a cable,  
And life's like an hourglass, glued to the table  
No one can find the rewind button now  
Sing it if you understand.  
and breathe, just breathe  
woah breathe, just breathe,  
Oh breathe, just breathe,  
Oh breathe, just breathe." _

The singing stopped, the last note echoing forlornly across the balcony. My back was still against the brick wall, but I realized with a start that I was no longer suppressing sobs and sniffles.

Slowly, i attempted to stand up, if only to simply learn the identity of the person that unknowingly helped me. However, my legs had fallen asleep, preventing me from being able to put weight on them.

Across the garden, the mysterious singer sighed heavily to herself. Through the trees, I saw her stand up, ready to walk away. I felt my breath catch in my throat; I'd be able to see her face above the bushes!

The breath left me in a whoosh as I realized that she was wearing a hood. Not uncommon, as many people wished to conceal their identity on a day-to-day basis. Even I wore a hood, to hide my previous life from the ignorant and forgetful.

Against all odds, I was hoping she wouldn't. Or at least that she wouldn't indoors. But my rotten luck prevailed.

She he was about to walk out the door. I couldn't even tell what color hair she had. I had to do something...

I was about to stand on wobbly legs by now. With my legs slightly apart, old man shoes on my feet, I held my hands out in front of me and concentrated on how I needed to do this in order to stop her. I _had_ to do this. I had only one shot.

A sphere of energy began to grow grow between my outstretched hands. It glowed brightly, so brightly that I was shocked that she didn't notice it. However, not as shocked as I was at how bright I had made it glow.

In one smooth motion, the sphere of energy flew out of my hands and hit the wall right next to the door just as the girl opened it. Immediately, her head whipped around to look at me as her hand reached down to her waist, seemingly ready to grab a weapon. Apparently, she decided she didn't need the weapon upon seeing me.

"Raven? When did you get here?" She asked, trying to remain casual. Using my powers, however, I could sense her growing anxiety.

"Longer than you have," I supplied shortly. "Who are you?"

She gulped. "Cutting right to the chase, I see. My codename is Sunshine, but everyone calls me Sunny."

I frowned slightly underneath my hood. I didn't want her codename; I wanted her actual name! But I couldnt be pushy.

"Your song was beautiful," I told her. She tried to bat away the compliment. "No, I'm being honest. I came here to have a nervous breakdown, but then you started singing. As you can see, I'm no longer on the verge of a breakdown. Thank you for that."

Sunny stared at me for a moment. "I... You're welcome, Raven."

I paused, coming up with an idea. "No amount of thanks I give you can make up for what you unknowingly helped me with. In return, I can do you a favor or answer any question, as long as it doesn't break any rules, promises, or codes."

The girl seemed flustered. Perfect. "I don't know what to ask for!"

"I could always tell you my real name."

She stared at me. "You'd do that?" I nodded. "Ok then. Will you tell me your real name?"

I took a deep breath. "My real name is Perseus Jackson, but my friends called me Percy."

The girl gasped. "Percy...?"

With a flourish, she unveiled her face, one I remembered even after all the years. She hasn't changed one bit.

 **Hey guys! Don't worry; I'm not changing update days. I just wanted to wish everyone (especially my fellow Americans) a happy end of the world! After all, Tuesday (today) was Election Day! No matter who ends up winning the election, happy end of the world!**


	42. Chapter 42

**Hey guys! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! Most of them were on the election and the prediction of WW3. To that I must say this: prepare for something worse than the zombie apocalypse. Unless President elect Donald Trump (ew, I never wanted to say those words) manages to unleash the zombie apocalypse, in which case we're all screwed. American or not. Anyways, enough political horrors. I Don't know about you, but I didn't come here to discuss my conspiracy theories about the new presidential elect. (Again, ew.) I came here to hide from the presidential elect! (For the third time, ew. And no offense to any Trump fans out there. But he's a tangerine. Or an oompa-loompa...) Anyways, that's enough political speaking for now. Even if it was just basically insults. Oh well. I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter!**

 **Percy's POV**

 _The girl gasped. "Percy...?"_

 _With a flourish, she unveiled her face, one I remembered even after all the years. She hasn't changed one bit._

"Calypso?" I asked, slightly shocked. "Why did you come here? What about Ogygia and the real world?"

Calypso stared at me, looking puzzled. "Zeus was going to free me after your wish at the end of the Titan War. However, only if I did some... Less than dignifying acts. The words he used to describe them should never be repeated.

"When I refused, Zeus put me on an equally unescapable island. He claimed it was just a temporary housing area while they found a real place for me in the mortal world."

"But it wasn't temporary?" I guessed, a bitter edge tainting my tone of voice.

"No," Calypso spat. "I was there for ten years without even my invisible servants as company; they stayed on Ogygia. Then Chaos came and saved me. I've been here ever since."

Sighing, I looked at the floor. "I'm really sorry, Calypso."

"For what?" Her baffled voice almost made me rethink the situation. But I could not.

"In the one that made the wish for you to be set free!" I explained. "It was my fault Zeus went to free you at all. Without my wish, you could've stayed on Ogygia with your invisible servants. You wouldn't have been insulted by that arrogant little—"

"Woah, Percy! This is a T-rated fanfic, not rated M for language!" Calypso scolded.

I frowned. "Wait, what? Fanfic? Are you high off something?"

The immortal rolled her eyes. "I'm fine. Forget what I said a second ago. Point is, stay calm."

Shoulders tense and arms crossed, I scoffed at my old friend. "I'm completely calm. Relaxed, even. What would tell you that I'm not?"

Calypso smirked a little, then nodded towards my feet. Perplexed, I followed her gaze.

My my toes were on fire.

Sure, it was only my toes, but still. That's a valid excuse for freaking out and leaping into the air. Especially since I first went to the garden to relax after catching on fire.

Calypso laughed when I got both feet back on the ground. "Why did you tell me I was on fire?" I demanded, slightly panicked.

She frowned slightly in concern at the panicked tone to my voice. "I thought it was just a brief power malfunction, due to your Chaos powers. Wasn't it?"

I took a deep breath. "It's been great catching up with you, Calypso, but I have to go. I'll see you around!"

"Percy, Raven, wait!" She yelled, trying to grab my wrist. She was too late though; I was already teleporting away.

I reappeared in my bedroom. The lights were off, the curtains closed, the front door locked with there different locks. I didn't need the lights to be on to lead myself around my small living space. I hadn't needed them in two years, but that didn't mean I didn't like the lights on sometimes.

This was not one of those times. I walked across the room to my bed, carefully stepping over the apple left over from the other night, before I flopped face-down on my mattress.

"What is wrong with me?" I mumbled into the covers, my voice slightly muffled. "I nearly lost it twice today. I almost killed Luke, and Chaos knows what I would've done if Calypso hadn't stopped me when she did!" I sighed into the mattress. "I'm useless. One of these days, I'm going to lose control. Someone is going to die because of me."

A desperate pounding on my door stopped any more harsh words against myself. "Raven! Raven!"

I stayed silent. I could tell it was Luke outside my door, no doubt looking for me after I almost killed him. Although why he was looking for me, I had no clue. _I almost killed him_. What other excuse did the idiot need to bury his losses and just _leave me alone_?

Apparently I needed to do something as bad as actually killing him, seeing as how he kept knocking on my door and shouting.

"Raven, Raven? Are you in there?"

Thank Chaos I left the lights off. Luke couldn't tell whether I was in my room or not.

After another minute of banging on the door, Luke stopped and walked away. I almost smiled to myself, glad to be alone once again.

Although i I really wasn't alone; I had my depressing thoughts of self-hatred to keep my company.

 **Hey guys, sorry for the sHirt crappy chapter. I haven't been getting much sleep though, and it's really hard to type words when you're so tired you're seeing double. I tried to get as close to the usual word count as possible, but I'm a little short. I hope you guys aren't mad. I'll try to do better for next update, which will be a regular four days away (so on the 16th, if I did my math the right way). Again, I'm really sorry guys. I hope you don't mind too much. I'm just so thoroughly exhausted...**


	43. Chapter 43

**Hey guys! How's it going? Did you notice that no one ever answers that question when I ask it? That's a little suspicious. Anyways, thanks for all the reviews last chapter! I'm glad a lot of people caught and enjoyed the breaching of the fourth wall. :) I had to chuckle when writing that. On an unrelated note, I'm sorry my updates aren't super often (they're each four days apart, and I feel kinda bad) and I'm sorry they aren't super long (most are only about 1100 or 1200 words long). It's just so busy this year with a lot of homework and extra activities. On a related note, I have to move the update day again. Next update will be on Monday instead of Sunday. I have an audition (again; some of my more regular readers might remember me mentioning something about an audition during November last year) early on Saturday morning. So I'm going to try to get a good amount of sleep Friday night, which means no writing. I've tried out for this state-renowned orchestra because it's a huge honor to get accepted into it. I've tried out the last two years. Suffice to say, I have failed. This is my last chance to get in before I'm moved to the next age bracket. So, no pressure or anything on my part. (That's sarcasm guys. In case you couldn't tell.) Anyways, I've wasted enough time. I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter!**

 **Percy's POV**

 _After another minute of banging on the door, Luke stopped and walked away. I almost smiled to myself, glad to be alone once again._

 _Although I really wasn't alone; I had my depressing thoughts of self-hatred to keep my company._

I woke up in a cold sweat. I didn't even remember falling asleep. Come to think of it, why had I gotten up?

The knocking on my door gave me my answer. It was consistent, not sounded hurried. It almost sounded like a pounding of a drum.

 _Knock._

 _Knock._

 _Knock._

Whoever was outside obviously knew I was in my room. They weren't even yelling; a sign that they were either listening carefully to the inside or they simply didn't care. Should I hope it's the latter and try to teleport away? The farthest I can teleport at a time is a mile; that'd be more than enough distance, right?

As if listening to my thoughts (and, upon hearing the voice, maybe he was), a voice called through the door, "Don't even think about it."

I huffed. "Leave me alone, Dad!"

The insistent knocking on my door stopped to almost nothing. "Why weren't you at dinner last night?"

"I think you already know, don't you? Luke probably told you everything!" I accused.

Chaos seemed to hesitate. "Oh, alright! He did!" He confessed. "But only because he was worried about you! No one saw you after that last night! How did we know that you weren't hurt?"

Despite his valid reasoning, I felt myself getting steamed up by his slightly mothering nature. "Just leave me alone!"

"Calm down, son!" Chaos instructed through the door.

"Don't tell my how to live my life!" I shouted.

"This is the Heart talking, not you!" Chaos insisted. "You have to control it! Show it who's boss!"

I growled, "No, this _is_ me talking! Even if it wasnt, I can't control the Heart! I'm going to kill somebody one day by accident!"

Chaos was silent for a long moment. So long, in fact, that I began to believe that he had left, knowing that I was truly a lost cause.

There was a heavy sigh outside of my door, my only warning that Chaos was still there before he began speaking. "I wasn't going to tell you about this until it got closer to the actual departure, but..."

He trailed off, hoping I'd respond, asking for the rest. He took my silence in stride, however, treating it as if I had actually asked.

"Seeing as how you're sad and gloomy, perhaps if I tell you now you'll cheer up," he tempted. He again receives silence, again taking it in stride.

"There's a mission in a few weeks to Earth. It is our plan to forewarn the Olympians of our impending attack. The ones we support will be able to find shelter, while the others may have time to change their ways. They could still face a slight punishment, but not nearly as severe as the tortures that would've been afflicted upon them."

I finally spoke. "Are you... Are you inviting me?"

I could feel Chaos's smile through the thick door. "It depends on whether or not you're going to talk to me."

"I've been talking to you," I muttered defensively. Chaos still heard me though.

"No, that falls more towards the screaming/shouting category than the talking one."

"Whatever."

There was a pause in the conversation. Chaos was soon to stop it though.

"Are you ready to come out here and talk like a civilized person?" He asked.

I thought it it over for a moment. "No," I decided.

I heard Chaos sigh through the door. "Are you ready to let me in so we can talk like civilized people?"

"... No."

Another sigh. Chaos sounded impatient as he asked, "If I teleport into your room, you won't start screaming and teleporting away?"

"... Do I have to be a civilized person?"

He sighed heavily. "No."

I contemplated the offer briefly. "I guess," I finally answered.

"Great. I'll be right in." Chaos paused. "You're wearing pants, right?"

Scoffing, I replied, "Yes, Dad."

A second later, Chaos fazed to oife in front of me. At keast, I assumed it was him. I didn't think I had allowed permission to enter to any other teleporting people.

Chaos groaned and looked around my room in bewilderment. "Why is it so dark in here?"

"The lights are off," I deadpanned.

Growling at my snarkiness under his breath, Chaos replied back, "But why are the lights off? And don't say something irritating like 'I didn't flick the light switch' or something."

I paused. "You know me too well." Shrugging, I continued. "I was enjoying the dark. It helped me to brood, sulk a bit, and curse myself."

There was silence for a long moment.

"Dad? You still here?" I asked, slightly concerned by his uncharacteristic silence.

"Fine," he managed. Although he didn't sound fine, I didn't press the point. He seemed to shave himself com his stupor before asking, "Are you ready to hear more details about that 'warning' meeting were planning?"

I grinned. In the nearly pitch black room, no one could see how malious that smile was. "Definitely."

 **Hey guys! So sorry, but next update is on Monday. Reasons are in the first AN, if you didn't read that. If you don't read them, I encourage you to. Thanks guys! Sorry this was a shorter chapter. :( I had an insane amount of homework. Please don't hate me for the short chapters and frequent changed updates.**


	44. Chapter 44

**Hey guys! How's it going? (Thanks for being the first to answer that question, Falathrin! Glad it's going well! (you said good, which is a perfectly fine answer, but when I tried to relate it back it was awkward. So now it's well.)) Thabks to everyone for all the reviews last chapter! Woah, I almost have 700! That's insanity right there. You guys are awesome. :) To the person that was wondering, my audition _is_ an all-state thing. I wasn't sure if anyone else had ever heard of them, and I didn't want to throw it out there and get blank faces back. For people that don't know, all-state is when kids from all over the state audition for an orchestral or jazz band. My state (not sure if this applies to all all-states) has grades 7-9 audition for the Junior Division and then grades 10-12 audition for Senior Division. Everyone trying out for the division (on the same instrument) has the same piece to play. Only the best get in. If you get in, it's like bringing pride and honor to your school. If you don't... Well, they say "better luck next time" at school, but it's more like "you dishonor our band". So no pressure. Anyways, that's enough of a rant for today. I own nothing, but please enjoy this chapter! :) **

**Percy's POV**

 _I grinned. In the nearly pitch black room, no one could see how malious that smile was. "Definitely."_

The next few weeks passed quickly. I was looking forward to going back to Earth. Don't get me wrong; Fermoso Planeta is great! Beautiful sights, nice people, different sounds. But after being away from my home planet of Earth for over two years, that made me a little anxious to get back.

Imagine Rapunzel locked in her tower for over two years. Now put her tower on the moon. Or maybe Pluto. Then she wouldn't get the luxury of seeing her home planet.

Anyways, it was finally the day of the flight to Earth. Chaos had already picked two of my travel companions (Luke and someone he kept calling Midnight). I got to pick the other two, so now Bianca (aka Diamond) and Calypso (aka Sunny) are coming with us.

That morning before take off, I ate breakfast with Luke and Bianca. Before you ask, I didn't know if Luke knew her identity. I figured it was better not to ask and raise suspicions.

"You guys excited to visit Earth?" I asked, practically bouncing in my seat.

Diamond laughed. "You know, Raven, I kind of am. I really want to see my dad again, and Earth is such a beautiful place when humans aren't destroying it."

Luke nodded. "I'm kinda looking forward to seeing it again too. Especially since the last time I was alive and saw it, it was through the eyes of a lunatic Titan possessing my body."

Bianca and I stared at Luke for a minute, slightly taken aback by the casual tone of voice he had adopted. "Alright then..." I finally muttered out.

"What are you looking forward to on Earth, Raven?" Luke asked me, probably in an attempt to ease the stone-hard stare Bianca was giving him.

 _Visiting my girlfriend's grave and my mom's grave_ , I wanted to say. However, even I knew that that would only get me pitied looks.

Instead, I answered, "I'm looking forward to seeing New York City again. I grew up in New York. I wonder how it's changed..." I smirked. "I'm also looking forward to having a 'diplomatic' and 'education' chat with some of my favorite immortals."

The two laughed and agreed with me. However, I had enough tact to realize that they too were looking forward to things that they couldn't say. Bianca was looking forward to seeing Nico all grown up and kinda-immortal. Luke was looking forward to seeing his dad again (no matter how much he denied it).

We talked about nothing important for the rest of breakfast. Once we finished, Luke led us to the hanger.

Inside was a massive aircraft vehicle. It reminded me of the red spaceship from Lilo and Stitch, except this one was sky blue. I knew it could probably change colors to mimic the sky above it. I was proved right when a fluffy white cloud drifted across the blue paint job.

We boarded the flight vehicle quickly, impatient to get underway. We didn't see anyone else there yet, so we sat down in a small room with two small couches, a chair, a coffee table, and a television. For a little while, I tried to tune in to season five of Once Upon a Time (that guy so didn't look like the real Hades). However, my mind was on Earth, ready to intimidate some Olympians.

Bianca gasped. "Hercules died fighting Cerberus?! So that's why he's in the Underworld! That's his unfinished business!" Luke even seemed a little surprised. I hoped I looked startled, if only just because of Bianca's sudden exclamation.

"Ooh, you're on the episode?" Calypso's voice asked from the doorway. I didn't even realize she was here. "I love OUaT! Want to know what happens in the next episode?"

"No!" Everyone shouted at once. Calypso smirked.

"Hey, have you seen Midnight?" I asked Calypso. "We're just waiting on her now."

Calypso frowned. "No, I havent seen her. Ive been near the door the whole time too."

Suddenly, the began to shake. "Take off in T-10, 9, 8..."

I leapt to my feet. "Wait! Midnight!"

"3, 2, 1, take off!"

The spacecraft launched itself into the air, leaving behind our least teammate.

 **Hey guys! Almost forgot: next update is Sunday, due to the Thanksgivung holiday. Sorry! With my rant up top, I almost forgot!**


	45. Chapter 45

**Hey guys! How's it going? Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! OMG we have more than 700 now! *screams into a pillow* This is awesome! You guys are awesome. :) First, I'll respond to some reviews. I'll try to make the ANs at the beginning shorter. Sorry it annoys people. I just tend to ramble and rant sometimes. When you get an Italian talking... Sorry. ;) Also, I'll try to make the chapters longer. But there's a serious problem some of my teachers seem to be suffering from sometimes. It's called delusion. They think we have hours on end to sit and do homework. Even if we have that time (which most don't), it's not pleasant. Besides, I'm a teen. Teens aren't meant to sit in a chair and stare at a paper for five hours. (See? That's my rant.) Anyways, now that that's done... I got the results from my audition! I made it in! Third times the charm, it seems. :) I even ranked pretty high out of everyone! I'm so excited! I think that's everything I had to go over... This wasn't that long, was it? I hope not. I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _The spacecraft launched itself into the air, leaving behind our least teammate._

I ran to the window and watched Chaos's favorite planet quickly disappear. I was dimly aware of Luke standing next to me.

"I can't believe we left her..." Luke murmured. He sighed. "She's going to be _pissed_ when we get back."

I stepped back from the window. "How could we just leave someone behind? Why'd this thing even take off?"

A voice coming from the ceiling startled me. "It took off because everyone was on board."

I was so startled, I fell to the ground and pointed up at the ceiling, slightly in fear and mostly in shock. Luke didn't look much better. "Who-who's up there?"

I could practically see the person roll their eyes. "I'm Midnight, idiot."

"Midnight?" Luke asked in shocked elation as I asked, "Where are you?"

Midnight sighed, still hidden from view. "Yes, it is I, Midnight. Come on Luke, I thought you were smart." I snickered. "And for your information, Raven, I'm in the air duct."

I blinked. "The air duct?" I took her silence as confirmation. "Why the air duct?"

"It gives me a better vantage point to watch everything. And I can shoot arrows at enemies without them noticing me from uo here."

A sudden thought occurred to me. "Wait. You have a bow and arrows?"

"Yes..."

"And you crawl around in cramped air ducts?"

"They're actually more spacious than you'd think."

I ignored the last comment. "So you're Hawkeye then!"

Bianca looked at me from the couch. "The mortal superhero?"

Grinning, I exclaimed, "Exactly!" I turned to direct my next sentences to the ceiling. "You're Hawkeye! Clint Barton!"

"There's one issue with your theory, Einstein," the sarcastic voice from the ceiling told me.

I frowned. "And what's that? You just don't want to admit that I'm right!"

Midnight snickered. "Yeah, _sure_... Or maybe there's just the fact that Clint Barton is a dude and I'm _not_."

I flushed in embarrassment, trying to come up with a witty comeback. Instead, all I managed was, "Yeah, well I'd know that if you actually come down here and socialized instead of hiding in the air ducts like a creeper!"

Midnight laughed, obviously not feeling the heat I wanted to deliver with my amazing comeback. Even Bianca and Calypso had to stifle a snort at my expense.

A grate dropped open in the ceiling. Two black boots poked out, quickly followed by a body. Midnight fell from the grate and landed in front of the TV, facing it.

"So you guys were watching Once Upon a Time," she mused, examining the paused TV screen.

"You're Midnight?" I blurted out without thinking. As soon as I said it, I wanted to smack myself. Of course she's Midnight. Not only was she decked from head to toe in black, but she's the only person on the ship whose name I didn't know.

"Yep," she answered, popping the 'p'. "Thanks for that, Captain Obvious."

"It's Raven, actually."

Midnight turned around to face me. "I know. Everyone's heard about you. Chaos's son and heir, the champion. Too bad you don't have time for all your friends."

Luke shot Midnight a warning look. "Midnight, stop it."

"What are you _talking_ about?" I asked the girl, slightly flustered.

Midnight turned away. "We're at Olympus."

Calypso frowned slightly. "But the ship hasn't stopped yet."

Suddenly, the engine died and the craft stopped moving. We didn't crash into the ground, so I assumed that we were meant to stop. I looked out the window and saw the vast city of Olympus spread before us.

I turned back to Midnight. "How'd you-" But she wasn't there anymore.

Fom behind me, her voice called out, "Come on team! It's time to interrogate some Olympians! I'm already going to be done by the time you get there if you go at this rate!"

Luke and I exchanged a look that was part confusion, part anger, and part awe. Calypso and Bianca had already followed Midnight off the space craft. We hurried to catch up before we got left behind.

 **Hey guys! Technical difficulties made this a little shorter than I intended. I was going to have a whole mega awesome cliffhanger for you... I'll try to make it up to you with a better one next chapter. ;) Next update will be Friday. My sisters have a band concert this week, and I'm going to that at night so I won't be able to work on this. Sorry!**


	46. Chapter 46

**Hey guys! How's it going? (someone please answer the question.) Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! Standard issues: I'll try to make chapters longer, try to update more frequently, etc.. Different topics: I can't tell you who Midnight is yet... Although a couple people got it right. ;) Also, I did not know that there was a website that translated this into Russian. That's pretty cool, actually! Anyways, next update is WEDNESAY. You got that? WEDNESDAY, WEDNESDAY, WEDNESDAY! I have a band parade on Saturday towards the night and another one early Sunday morning. Sorry guys! This season gets a little crazy with music. Anyways, I think that's everything. I own nothing but please enjoy the chapter! :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _Luke and I exchanged a look that was part confusion, part anger, and part awe. Calypso and Bianca had already followed Midnight off the space craft. We hurried to catch up before we got left behind._

We easily caught up to them. As a stealth group of five people, we made our way through Olympus.

It actually wasn't that difficult. There was no one in sight, yet we kept to the shadows anyways. We ducked behind bushes, rolled across pathways like ninjas, and even shimmied up a couple trees. (Ok, the tree shimmying was really only Luke and I; the girls looked on and rolled their eyes.)

We made it to the door of the throne room without being spotted by anyone. Or spotting anyone. It was concerning, to say the least. Every time I had been to Olympus, the streets were always full of life. Even on my banishment day, the depressing air didn't do much to change the street life.

At the marble doors, we stopped before barging in.

"I'll lead," I decided.

Midnight scoffed at me. "And why should you lead? What automatically makes you the leader?"

"I'm a–"

"Finish that sentence with the word 'boy' or a synonym for it, and ill castrate you," Midnight warned, a silver knife suddenly appearing in her hand from nowhere. She held it threateningly out towards me.

I gulped. "Noted."

What sounded like a combination between a snort and a laugh escaped from under Midnight's hood. "Wise of you to do so. Now, what was it you were saying?"

I paused to think over my point. "I've been to Olympus the most times. I know the Olympians pretty well after all the times they've debated on whether or not to kill me. I think I should lead the group inside."

To my surprise, Midnight nodded in agreement. "That's a valid point. I've been there a few times, but never for the Olympians to contemplate my purpose of living. Anyone else want to add to the debate?"

Bianca and Calypso shook their heads. "No. We've never even been to Olympus."

Midnight nodded. "Ok, so Diamond and Sunny are out. What about you, Luke?"

Luke hesitated. "There's someone I need to catch up with. I don't want our first meeting after so long to start with me leading the storming of Olympus. No offense, Raven."

I shrugged. "No offense taken. I'm planning on _at least_ cursing out about half the people in there. i have no one that i really need to catch up with."

I turned to Midnight. "What about you?"

She cocked her head at me, as if she didn't think id ask her. For a second, I didn't think she's respond. Then, she said, "I would. After all Zeus has done to me and everyone else, it'd be a pleasure to lead the rebellion. But I have someone I need to talk to. _Privately_." She practically growled the last word at me, as if I wanted to hide in and eavesdrop on their conversation.

"With who?" I couldn't help but ask.

" _Artemis_."

From the tree to our left came a gasp. Midnight looked over there, not even blinking (or least, I don't imagine her doing that; she's still wearing the hood) and took out a bow and arrows. She fired an arrow faster than the eye could blink. We all knew it had hit it's target when a brief cry of pain echoed throughout the area.

"Come down here," Midnight spoke emotionlessly, "or else my next arrow will hit someplace far more fatal than your leg."

A figure climbed down from the tree, an arrow clearly sticking out of one leg. She limped towards us, out of the shadows and into the light.

Midnight gasped. "Lady Artemis!" She dropped her bow in shock. "I'm sorry! I thought you were someone else!"

Artemis frowned at us all. "Who are you?"

I took a slight step forwards. "I am Raven, the leader of this group. We come from Lord Chaos himself in order to warn the Olympians of a coming war."

Artemis gaped at me. "A war? Against who? We've defeated everyone! The Titans and Giants wouldn't dare rise again so soon, and the primordials are too faded to fight."

I gave Artemis a look I hope she received through my hood. "That is classified information. We must have the entire council assembled for that to be revealed."

Artemis narrowed her eyes on me, but didn't pursue the topic. Instead, she asked, "Who're they?"

I quickly turned around to face my team. They didn't shake their heads no, so i figured they were fine with telling her.

"The one that shot you is Midnight. The other guy is Messenger. These two are Black Diamond and Sunshine," I said, pointing to each person in turn. They all waved slightly at Artemis, who blinked at each person.

She turned back to Midnight. "You knew I was a goddess when you shot me. You didn't seem to care until you knew it was _me_. Why?"

Midnight was silent for a moment. Finally, she said, "I need to find one of your hunters."

"Why?"

"I have a score to settle," was the only answer Midnight gave.

"... Which one?" Artemis asked carefully, as if afraid of the answer.

"Thalia Grace."

 **Hey guys! Next update is Wednesday! Reasons in the AN at the top. Thanks! Have an awesome almost-week!**


	47. Chapter 47

**Hey guys! How's it going? (Thanks for answering in the question!) Thanks for the reviews last chapter! My sister's concert was pretty good. I was the stealth photographer, and since she changes instruments (she plays percussion), I had to sprint around the gym to get a good photography angle. I myself play the flute (that's my original and my favorite), piccolo, and oboe. All the oboe players, put your hands up! *looks around and slowly lowers hand* Well, this is awkward now... ;) The trombone is a pretty awesome instrument. It's fun to decorate. (My bae plays trombone in the band with me, and he let me help decorate it with Christmas paper for a parade.) I put my tree up on Saturday. Anyone else? Yes, I do celebrate Christmas (but I have nothing against other religions or holidays). Since someone asked, I'm doing pretty well. :) Little sleep-deprived, if we're being honest, but that's to be expected of a high school musician around Christmas time, right? ;) As for the story, I'd tell you guys who Midnight is right now, but where's the fun in that? ;) I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **Percy's POV**

" _I have a score to settle," was the only answer Midnight gave._

 _"... Which one?" Artemis asked carefully, as if afraid of the answer._

 _"Thalia Grace."_

Artemis gasped. "My lieutenant? I'm sure she's never met you!"

Midnight scoffed. "She hasn't met _Midnight_ ," she emphasized. "She met the person I was before, however. So have you."

"I'm sure we've never met. I think I'd remember," Artemis said. Her words were strong and convincing, but her tone laced them with doubt. She frowned at Midnight.

Midnight sighed. "And here I thought that I was memorable. I guess I'm overshadowed by your current hunters?"

Artemis snorted. "Yeah, right. Some of them can't tell a buck from a doe."

Laughing, Midnight said, "Even I remember that, and the only thing I've hunted in about twenty years are the monsters in Tartarus!" She continued to laugh, but Artemis stopped and stared at her.

"You were in Tartarus? Why? You work for Chaos, don't you?"

Midnight stopped laughing and sighed. "I do work for Chaos. Zeus cast me into Tartarus. I used to live in the sky, gazing down on the world. But he didn't want anyone to be above him, especially not someone with the blood of a Titan."

Artemis froze. "Lived in the sky? Blood of a Titan? Are–"

Midnight interrupted the goddess's musings. "Are you going to tell me where Thalia is or am I going to have to hunt her down myself?"

I tried to intervene. "Midnight, this isn't the goal of the mission! We're supposed to–"

"Trust me. I know what I'm doing," Midnight told me via telepathic connections. As the heir of Chaos, I've been trained how to send telepathic messages. Others can send them to me if their minds are strong enough.

"What are you supposed to do here?" Artemis asked suspiciously.

I shrugged, realizing my mistake. "I changed my mind mid-thought. Midnight has my permission to go find Thalia Grace."

The others in my squad looked at me strangely, probably wondering what crack I was taking that made me think it was a good idea to take a side mission and let Midnight hunt down Artemis's lieutenant.

I wouldve sent sent them a telepathic messge, but I'm a weakling when it comes to my Chaos powers. I can't do anything right with them.

Artemis looked between Midnight and I, as if trying to figure us out. She eventually reached a mental conclusion.

"I will take you to my hunter's camp, as long as none of you engage my hunters without legitimate reasoning or provoking."

Midnight grinned, slightly terrifying me with the possibilities of what her facial expression could mean. Part of me wanted to know what she was plotting; the other part wanted to _let it be_ , as the Beatles would say.

I nodded. "We agree to your terms." I shot a pointed glance around at everyone. They repeated what I said, Midnight a little more hesitantly than the rest.

Artemis continued to look warily at Midnight, but nevertheless held out her hand. "Grab on, and I'll flash you to my camp before the Olympian council meeting."

I grabbed Artemis's hand, and held out the other one to the rest of my team. They all grabbed on and we teleported away.

We appeared in Colorado in the midst of silver tents. A girl in a silver tiara came running up. I instantly recognized her as Thalia Grace. She hadn't aged a bit.

"Milady!" She slowed down when she saw the rest of us. "Who're they?"

"They wanted to see you. Or at least one of them did."

Midnight stepped forwards at the slight cue. She smirked at Thalia, who narrowed her eyes. "Thalia Grace, we meet again."

Thalia opened her mouth to protest, but Midnight cut her off. "Yes, we have met. Apparently, none of you remember me." Her tone was bitter and angry.

"I see you became lieutenant, Thalia," Midnight continued after a second.

"Yeah, about twenty years ago," Thalia snorted.

"Unfortunately, I was in Tartatus for fifteen of those years."

Thalia gaped at Midnight. "For fifteen years?"

"Yes. It was highly unpleasant and I don't wish to talk about it any more."

Thalia shut up.

"I do have a score to settle with you, Thalia Grace. You see, you owe me."

"How?" Thalia sputtered.

"You bet me a hundred dollars that you would never join the hunt."

Thalia paled.

"Look at where you are now!" Midnight gestured around with her hands. "Time to pay up!"

"I don't have a hundred dollars," Thalia said, slightly afraid and confused.

Midnight smiled. "That's fine. I'll drop the debt if your hunt and Milady Artemis join the rebellion that my squad and I are a part of."

I was taken aback, as was everyone else.

The huntress hesitated.

"You know, after so long, it's probably more than a hundred dollars if I really do the math..." Midnight taunted.

"Ok!" Thalia rushed. "Ok! The hunt will join the rebellion if you never bring up that money again."

Midnight smiled. "My pleasure. i didnt want the money anyways. We needed an Olympian ally."

Thalia began to get color back in her face. "Is that all you wanted?"

"I also wanted to see my lady and my sisters again." With that last statement, Midnight pulled off her hood to reveal Zoë Nightshade.

 **Hey guys! Next update is Monday! I have a band concert Thursday, so I need the extra day. Thanks! And sorry for the constant update changes. :(**


	48. Chapter 48

**Hey guys! Hows it going? Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! I'm just gonna come right out and say that I'm sorry that my story sounds like it is written by a three year old. I would like to reassure everyone that I am not that age and I have not been for a good amount of time. It would be a miracle if I was a three year old though, because I've been writing stories on this website for about two and a half years. Anyways, back to the subject at hand. I'm not sure if anyone else has agreed with the fact that my writing sounds like that of a three year old's, but I would like to apologize. I'm not very good at writing longer pieces, in case you can't tell. I'm much bketter at writing short stories, but I love writing longer things. Even if I stink at it. (Don't get me wrong; I do love short story writing too.) I have seriously considered finding a beta, but I prefer to work alone. And if I did decide to get a beta, updates would take much longer. Probably at least seven days instead of four, plus whatever delays for my beta _and_ myself. And some people already hate me for having a regularly four-day update and I uodate after five days with warning. So for now, I suppose I'll just try to improve my writing myself. Give me things I can fix and I'll try to fix them. Say "Yo, you should use the word 'said' less" or something. Maybe a "dude, totally replace a couple 'yeahs' with 'mega awesome'" or something. I don't know. Just let me know! I check reviews and PMs every day and will get back to a PM within 24 hours (usually). Just give me a shout! On an unrelated topic, I'm glad everyone liked the Zoë unmasking. It was totally obvious, I admit. I was going to be surprised if no one had guessed it by at least the end of the chapter. I gave more than enough clues. ;) Well, I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _Thalia began to get color back in her face. "Is that all you wanted?"_

 _"I also wanted to see my lady and my sisters again." With that last statement, Midnight pulled off her hood to reveal Zoë Nightshade._

"Zoë?" Everyone gasped except Luke. Lucky bastard knew all along. I felt myself start to get angry that he kept this from me, but I tried to quell that feeling in my chest. No need to turn homicidal over a _girl_. Sure, she's beautiful and smart and funny and witty and... Point is, I dont need to murder my best friend.

My last name might be Jackson, but that doesn't mean I should become the next Jack the Ripper. (Get it? Jackson? Jack? No...?)

Because of my inner monologue and slightly murderous thoughts, I missed part of what Zoë said. I think it was mostly, "Yes, I'm not dead. Yes, I was cast into Tartarus by your dad. You want to help us torture him slowly? Perfect!" Although, not in those exact words. Of course, for all I know, Zoë could've been confessing her undying love for me. It could've easily gone either way.

She was just finishing discussing about hEr recent life when I tuned back in. "Yeah, Chaos has been taking care of me for the last two years. I'm ranked pretty high, which is why I'm on this mission, but not as high ranked as Raven over here."

Every eye turned to me, so I awkwardly waved. "Hi. Uh, I'm Raven. In case you didn't know."

Artemis eyed me suspiciously. "You're a _boy_ ," she spat. "What position that you hold could be higher than Zoë's?"

I froze, slightly terrified of answering. Would she turn me into a jackelope? Can she even do that? If she didn't, would Chaos save me?

Zoë made the answering decision for me. She leaned down to Artemis's ear and said in a stage whisper that everyone could clearly hear, "He's the heir of Chaos!"

Everyone ne stared at me, even the people that knew already. Artemis gave me a death glare before turning to Zoë with a caring yet confused expression. "Why is _he_ heir of Chaos? Why not you?"

Zoë shrugged. "I don't have as much against the Olympians as he does."

"Really? But after what Zeus did..." Artemis glanced between Zoë and me with a strange expression on her face.

"He's done worse to Raven. So has the entire Olympian council."

Artemis's silver eyes widened. "The entire council?!"

"Relax, Artemis. You have remained on my good side, along with a few others. Your twin brother... Not as much. But you are safe." I smirked. "For now."

Bianca spoke up. "That's why where were here. To warn the Olympians, so they know who has crossed us and who has not. We don't want to kill everyone, just a select group."

Artemis nodded slowly. "I see." She hesitated before nodding. "I'll sneak you into the throne room. I'm late for a council meeting, but they wouldn't have started without me. I'll flash you into the back of the room in the shadows. It is up to you to make your presence known."

I smiled. "Perfect. Thank you, Artemis. I chose wisely when I decided to save you, and you chose wisely when you disn't vote to push me into the Pit."

Artemis looked at me curiously, but I turned away from her. "Grab hands to be teleported, everyone! And Midnight, flip your hood back up. We don't want the others to know who you are. Not yet."

They obeyed my orders quickly. Once we were all connected, I let Artemis grab my shoulder. "We're ready."

"Alright. Here we go. Good luck, Raven," she told me before flashing us into the Olympian throne room. Time for the fun to start.

 **Hey guys! Next update is Sunday. Sorry it's so far away, but I have a gig Tuesday night, Thursday night, and Friday night. I should probably be going till Monday, but I'll update on Sunday because I'm gonna have to take a couple days off for Christmas and the holidays. Sorry!**


	49. Chapter 49

**Hey guys! How's it going? Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! Woah, 13 reviews in less than 24 hours! A couple quick things: I know my writing isn't the best. I'm trying to improve, but there's not much they teach us in school about writing. I'm in high school, yet we apparently already know all we have to about fiction writing. The only writing they teach us is essays. I'm kinda going at this alone with only other fanfictions and actual novels to guide me. So I apologize. Also, I will attempt to make the chapters longer. Key word:** ** _attempt_** **. I know a couple people are musicians, so I can't be the only one that knows how busy it gets for musicians around Christmas time. It's almost like I'm on a tour; I have a different gig every other night! All at different places, too. (Sure, none are as snazzy as the Royal Albert Hall in London or the National Concert Hall in Dublin, but I love it anyways!) Hopefully, I'll be able to have regular 4-day updates with longer chapters. _Hopefully_ is the key word in that sentence. Well, I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter! **

**Percy's POV**

 _They obeyed my orders quickly. Once we were all connected, I let Artemis grab my shoulder. "We're ready."_

 _"Alright. Here we go. Good luck, Raven," she told me before flashing us into the Olympian throne room. Time for the fun to start._

My squad and I appeared in the shadows behind Artemis's throne, our appearance masked by the flash made by Artemis herself. All the other Olympians were already in their thrones.

"Artemis!" Zeus boomed. My teeth clenched at the sound of his voice. "You are late."

I saw Artemis's muscles tense slightly, yet she seemed to casually relax in her silver throne. "My apologies, Father. I did not see the time."

From my position, I couldn't see Zeus's face. However, I assumed that he had a face of shame and disappointment, anger probably finding place there too.

"Now that everyone is here, are we ready to start the meeting?" Zeus disn't leave a pause in the air for protest. Instead, he continued on. "Alright, let's begin. Who would like to have their problems addressed first?"

Here, Zeus did stop talking. I exchanged a brief glance with my teammates, nodding to let them know that it was go time.

"I would," I announced, stepping out from behind Artemis's throne. My teammates walked out from behind the thrones next to Artemis, so as to not cause suspicion. Aphrodite jumped when Luke and Zoë emerged from the shadows behind her, but Athena just watched curiously as Bianca and Calypso walked by.

Zeus openly stared at me with his dull blue eyes. "And you are...?"

"Who I am isn't important. However, so you don't throw a hissy fit, you may call me Raven."

Athena spoke up. "What problem do you have?"

I glared at her and several others from underneath my hood. "My comrades and I have a problem with many of you Olympians. You have done many things under the leadership of _Zeus_ that have had a negative effect on the universe. Our leader has asked us to come here and warn those of you that have blindly followed Zeus."

Athena frowned at me. "Who is your leader? Who are your 'comrades'? Who are you warning? What are you warning against?" I held up a hand to stop the goddess of wisdom.

"Silence," i growled. To the shock of the Olympians, she grew quiet. "Most questions will be answered in time." I gazed around at the assembled council.

"Now, we have come to warn you that a war is going to be waged against several of you Olympians. Not all. The few that are granted amnesty do not have to get involved in the conflict; if they do not, they shall have a place on the new Olympian council. However, if the innocent Olympians choose to engage in the fight or are found betraying the opposing side, then they shall have the same punishment," I explained.

"You're explaining this as if we are going to lose!" Hera exclaimed from her seat next to her husband.

I smirked. "Yes, we do expect you to lose. However, that does not need much discussion yet. I have warned the pardoned Olympians to mind their actions, as they will have severe consequences. Now, would you like to know who those pardoned few are?"

All the Olympians nodded their heads. Thankfully, none of them spoke other than to mutter something to their neighbor or under their breath. Even more fortunately, _he_ had yet to open his mouth.

"Lovely," I said. "The pardoned Olympians are as follows, and there are no second chances for them: Artemis, Aphrodite, Demeter, Dionysis, Hephaestus, and Hermes."

There was an uproar. The Olympians I had not named were protesting loudly, asking what was different about them compared with the pardoned immortals.

"Silence!" I yelled.

 **Hey guys. Really sorry. That's not where I wanted to end the chapter, but I got sick last night and I just feel too miserable and tired to write. I'll try to get a longer chapter for next time. Next update is in four days on Thursday. Hopefully I won't feel as crappy then as I do now. Sorry again!**


	50. Chapter 50

**Hey guys! hows it going? Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! :) I'm feeling better now, so thanks for the sympathy. I really hate being sick. I mean, so does everyone else, but still. I feel the need to say it, even if it's very obvious. Also, I said this already, but I really didn't want to end last chapter where it did. It was going to be an epic cliffie right before Percy went all ass-whooping on the Olympians. Either that, or it was going to leave off with Poseidon standing up and saying something that he would no doubt regret. But alas, it was not meant to be. :'( Anyways, I have an important message at the bottom! I think everyone usually checks that, as I usually keep my update info there, but make sure you check if you don't usually! Thanks! I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _There was an uproar. The Olympians I had not named were protesting loudly, asking what was different about them compared with the pardoned immortals._

 _"Silence!" I yelled._

The throne room became silent. All eyes were on me, from the confused gaze of the immortals I named to the scowls of the ones I didn't.

I stared back, not elaborating on anything for a long moment. Finally, Zeus cried out, "What do you want?!"

I glared. "If you had patience, maybe you would know. And maybe we wouldn't be in this situation."

 **Warning: Explicit Language Coming up**

Zeus growled, "What the hell does that mean, you bastard?"

I could feel feel my heart rate increasing exponentially, yet I tried to retain some control. "Now, that's not very polite," I mocked. "After all, we're the guests here."

"No one wants you here! You deserve to crawl back to the hellhole you came from, you bastard and all your bitch friends," Zeus spat.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a blue glow start to come from my hands. It pulsed with the beating of my frantic heart, ready to explode from my chest and from my hands. I tried again to regain control and succeeded.

"You're probably a no-good traitor, just like that idiot Percy Jackass-son that we banished years ago! He betrayed our forces to Gaea and Kronos during the wars, so he deserved eternity in the darkest hell of all! He was a bastard like you, with his slut of a girlfriend."

"Hey!" Athena protested. "That was my daughter, you're talking about!"

"Put a sock in it, Athena," Zeus commanded. "Aphrodite told us herself that Jackass-son probably caught her cheating on him with a better looking man, like my son Jason. Thats why he went and killed her in cold blood. He probably would've killed the other person too, if we hadn't intervened!"

 **Explicit Language Ended (for now)**

Im not sure whether it was the insults thrown my way or the insults thrown at Annabeth that pushed me over the edge. For a brief period of time, I wasn't quite sure of anything.

It seemed like I had only blinked. One second, I was standing with barely controlled rage near Artemis's throne. The next, I was closer to Zeus's throne than I had been in 15 years. Everyone was screaming, a couple people's hair was on fire, while small patches of blue fire still remained on the outskirts of the room. The walls, floor, and ceiling were all spotted with soot.

I wasnt quite sure what had happened, other than the simple fact that I was pissed and I wanted to see some immortal heads roll.

A small part of my brain resisted. It told me that that cursed heart had me in its control. That I didn't want to actually see (almost) all the Olympians killed. That every one would be terrified of me now, and what would that accomplish?

That part of me was easily ignored.

 **Warning: Return of the Explicit Language**

I stood before the cowering immortals, my hands clenched in fists, and screamed, "All of you, just SHUT THE F*CK UP!"

The only sound seemingly on the whole paradise of Olympus was the crackling of the fires I had unleashed.

"Good!" I shouted. "Finally you Olympians are learning some manners! Now, I don't care who you are, but you're going to listen to me. You could even be one of the pardoned, but if you don't shut the f*ck up when I'm speaking to you, then you might as well just shit yourself because I'll be sending you to hell with all the others!"

I gazed around the room at all the terrified faces. Ares was trying to pat fire out of his hair, and Demeter was desperately trying to stop her throne from being completely engulfed in the inferno. I laughed darkly, my eyes wandering around to all the other examples of mass destruction that I had caused. At that moment, I loved it.

"Look at what I destroyed _by myself_. My powers might be more unique than others, but there are still more like me that are willing and ready to defy you all. A whole army, in fact! So you would dare ruin this one chance you were given at preparation? Next time, we won't be so generous."

 **Explicit Language Ended**

Everyone was staring at me, including my teammates. Zoë was shaking her head slightly, as if begging me to never do something stupid like that again while also asking why I did it in the first place.

I blonked once, feeling my heart rate finally begin to slow to normal. I wanted to sigh in relief that I was going to be back in control, but I wasn't yet. I sidnt want to jinx myself.

I turned around, ready to walk back to my friends. From behind me, I heard a rustling of fabric before a voice that make my teeth clench rang out.

"You think you can intimidate us into cooperation?" Poseidon yelled. I turned back around to face him. If he could've seen it, the scowl on my face would've sent him crying for Rhea. My death glare would've had him dead by my feet. As it was, my body emitted such an aura of hatred that the sea god hesitated.

"What did you just say?" I asked, incredulous. He would dare stand up to _me_? If only he knew.

"You won't rule us with fear!" Poseidon repeated.

"That's what I thought you had said." My heart rate increased again.

 **Slight Violence Warning. This following paragraph only.**

A millisecond passed. Within that millisecond, I had unsheathed my new sword and thrown it towards Poseidon. It lodged itself in his shoulder, causing golden ichor to spew from the wound. I sprinted over and retrieved my sword, twisting it violently before yanking it out of the sea god's shoulder.

I stalked back to my friends, dragged my ichor-stained blade behind me on the ground, creating sparks and leaving a golden trail. I left the sea God to bleed out on his pathetic throne.

"Don't mess with us. Especially don't mess with me. I wouldn't hesitate to kill any of you, except those pardoned, but killing has been forbidden until the first battle. Otherwise _Poseidon_ would be _dead,"_ I spat. "See you at the battle."

 **Hey guys! I hope you enjoyed the longer chapter! :) Next update will be December 29. That'll be the last update of 2016! Happy holidays, no matter what you celebrate. Stay safe everyone! Safe travels for everyone travellung, and I hooe that no matter where you're going/what you're doing, you have a wonderful holiday! :)**


	51. Chapter 51

**Hey guys! :) Hows it going? How was your holiday? Did anyone get anything good? Thanks for all the reviews last chapter, on an unrelated note! :) I really appreciate it. Don't worry about offending me when you throw your own creative ideas out there. Some of my stories were about to head one way before someone threw out a creative suggestion and I suddenly said, "Oh! This is the best thing ever!" And totally changed the direction of the story around. Moral of the story, I don't mind if you throw stuff out there. :) I encourage it, actually! I barely even realized this little fun fact, but we're at over 50 chapters here! Whoop whoop! ;) That's pretty awesome, right? No one...? Tough crowd. (Im teasing. You guys are awesome.) Anyways, I also wanted to say that I know I don't have to warn people for explicit language because this is rated T, but I don't use swears a lot in this (they're sprinkled in, but not everywhere) and I have a feeling that if I suddenly start having the characters shouting words they don't usually shout, there's going to be someone that gets mad at me. I'd prefer to keep everyone happy and not hating my guts. You know? Thanks for understanding guys! I own nothing, but please enjoy this chapter. :)**

 **Percy's POV**

" _Don't mess with us. Especially don't mess with me. I wouldn't hesitate to kill any of you, except those pardoned, but killing has been forbidden until the first battle. Otherwise Poseidon would be dead," I spat. "See you at the battle."_

( **In lamest terms of recap, Poseidon got his ass handed to him because he pissed off Percy.)**

Back at the ship, I fell onto the couch and tried to relax. My heart was still beating faster than normal, but not fast enough that i would immediately lose control again if anything happened.

Behind me, I could hear everyone else filing into the room. The couch sagged as a single person sat down on my left; the seat to my right remained vacant. My head was in my hands, my elbows resting on my knees, so I couldn't see where everyone was.

"Dude, you okay?" The person on my left asked suddenly.

"I'm peachy."

"Really? Cause you don't look—"

"Sarcasm, Luke. That was sarcasm."

"Oh. Sorry." Luke said from my left before he let the silence envelope everyone again.

Bianca couldn't let the silence last, it seemed. Suddenly, she blurted out, "Well, _are_ you okay? No sarcasm this time."

"I'm fine," I lied, still not revealing my face.

"That's a lie," Calypso said.

Bianca sounded angry when she spoke. "You lied? Tell us how you really feel!"

"I'm fine!" I insisted. "I feel fine! Okay?"

"I'm pretty sure he's still lying."

"Calypso!" I barked. "Just shut up, already!"

"She's just worried about you, Percy! We all are! Tell us the truth!" Bianca pleaded.

I snapped. "Don't call me Percy!" I roared. "I am NOT Percy Jackson! He died when his dad and everyone else he trusted stabbed him in the back and left him to die!"

Tense silence followed my outburst. I could tell someone wanted to say something, but restrained themselves. I was breathing heavily, my chest rising and falling rapidly as I tried to control my heart rate. However, I could feel myself losing the battle, the tense silence causing my brain to turn their words around over and over in my mind, reliving them again and again and again. Each time they were played in my mind, I felt my heart begin to beat a little faster, my adreniline level rising.

Someone out a hand on my shoulder. "Calm down," they demanded. My head was throbbing, my mind foggy, so I could only vaguely tell that they were a woman. And the voice sounded familiar. Who was it?

I think ink I might've choked out something non-intelligible, but I couldn't be sure. All i knew was that the hand left my shoukder, only to slap my cheek. The same voice ordered, "Get ahold of yourself, man! This isn't you."

I was shocked by the sudden change from gentle and caring to slapping my face. My cheek stung, no doubt a hand print beginning to form. If I hadn't pulled my hood down, I bet she would've ripped the fabric with that slap.

The fog in my mind slowly began to lift. I could feel myself resisting, part of me longing to delve deeper into the murkiness. The two parts of myself were battling it out, the clear part vs. the muddy one.

The muddy part of my mind was winning, about to drag my subconsciousness deeper into the fog. However, a slap on my other cheek stopped me. It was like getting splashed with icy cold water when the warm blankets around you were trying to make you fall asleep.

The water was good temporarily, but the blankets would win in the long run.

"Don't give into it!" Someone commanded. I couldn't tell where their voice was coming from. Whose voice was it even? Did I know them? I thought i knew them. I couldn't be sure.

I grumbled something that I hope translated to, "I want to sleep." I don't think it worked, though, seeing as how in the next second, someone was grabbing both of my shoulders and shaking them, chanting, "Wake up, wake up, wake up!"

Its not a very considerate thing to do when someone obviously wanted to nap.

I felt my head leave my hands as my elbows slid off my knees. I crashed sideways on my right, which was fortunate because someone was sitting on my left. Who was it again? My arm hurt slightly from the fall, but not too much. Whatever I was laying on cushioned it. What was this squishy thing I was on?

I could vaguely hear voices around me, but they were beginning to fade out. The war in my head was ending, the muddy part of my mind winning. I quickly surrendered and let myself be enveloped by the fog. The voices shouting around me increased in frequency, until they faded out all together.

 **Hey guys! Quick thing: due to New Year's Eve, next update will be Wednesday. Sorry that I'm taking two days off, but I'll probably be exhausted the night after new year's, and I don't want to not plan for it and end up writing you guys a crappy chapter. Happy New Year (in advance)!**


	52. Chapter 52

**Hey guys! hows it going? How we're all your New Year's festivities? I'd love to hear about what crazy things people did to keep themselves awake until midnight! Or even if you just sat and watched TV like I did, occasionally slapping people to keep them awake, then tell me about that, why dont you! I like interaction. I know it's a crazy thing (interaction?! Is that like** ** _socializing_** **?! Gasp!) but why not. Anyways, thanks for all the reviews last chapter! On that note, WOAH, this almost has 800 reviews! *mind is blown* That's awesome! :) So thanks to everyone for the almost 800 reviews, along with over 500 favs and over 700 follows. That's more favs and follows than I've ever gotten! xD I'm pretty happy. :) I figured I'd bring attention to it now because I brought attention to the reviews (and I didn't have much else to say). Anyways, I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **Percy's POV (recap only)**

 _I could vaguely hear voices around me, but they were beginning to fade out. The war in my head was ending, the muddy part of my mind winning. I quickly surrendered and let myself be enveloped by the fog. The voices shouting around me increased in frequency, until they faded out all together._

 **Zoë's POV (starting at the beginning of last chapter)**

Everyone followed Raven back to the ship. I was the last one to enter the room that had somehow become our meeting room. Raven was sitting in the middle of the couch with his hand in his hands and his elbows balanced on his knees. Luke was sitting to his left, while Diamond and Sunny stood against the wall to his right. I was standing against the wall to the right, watching everyone keenly. I knew by the looks on everyone's faces (except Raven's, since he was hiding his) that they had already started talking.

"Well, _are_ you okay? No sarcasm this time!" Diamond suddenly blurted out, causing everyone to jump as she shattered the silence.

"I'm fine," came Raven's slightly muffled voice. I had to use keen skills to hear the lie in that statement, although Raven clearly did not look fine either way.

"That's a lie." Sunny looked at Diamond and nodded gravely. I guess they must be the dynamic duo or something now.

"You lied?! Tell us how you really feel!" Diamond demanded, her face turning red in anger.

Raven tensed. "I'm fine! I feel fine!" He cried out. "Okay?"

"I'm pretty sure he's still lying."

"Calypso! Just shut up, already!"

I was watching the three way verbal tennis match with bated breath. This could not end well. Two stubborn forces against each other... Eventually, someone would either take it too far, manage to step down (which is unlikely), agree, or someone would snap.

Fifty bucks said Raven would overreact to something before any of those other solutions were reached.

Diamond continued the conversation between herself, Suny, and Raven, exclaiming, "She's just worried about you, Percy! We all are! Tell us the truth!"

Diamond clapped a hand over her mouth as soon as she realized what she had said. More specifically, what she had called him. Everyone (bar Raven) was staring at her in horror. We all knew what was coming.

It was like a volcano explosion. He suddenly roared, not lifting his face him his hands, screaming, "Don't call me Percy! I am NOT Percy Jackson! He died when his dad and everyone else he trusted stabbed him in the back and left him to die!"

I guess you owe me fifty bucks. (I'll hold it to you. Better cough it up, buddy. I'm fully immortal now, so no waiting around for me to die.)

Silence followed the outburst. Diamond opened her mouth, as if to say something. I wasn't sure if it would seal the wound or widen it, but I didn't want to take any chances. Sunny obviously agreed, placing her hand on Diamond's shoulder and shaking her head.

Diamond got the hint. Sunny then turned to me and nodded, gesturing towards Raven. I got the hint.

I walked to to the front of the couch and stood in front of Raven, watching as his form shifted rapidly along with his rapid breathing. He was glowing a slight blue color.

I out a hand on his shoulder. "Calm down."

With his head down, I couldn't hear all of what he said. Most of it sounded like listless mutterings, but I caught a few words. "Curse... Battle... Pretty... Pain..." Three of those made sense to me, but the fourth one? Why would he randomly throw the word "pretty" in the mix? It made no sense to me.

I slapped him across the face. "Get a hold of yourself, man! This isn't you!" The muttering fool sitting in front of me on the couch was certainly not the man I almost killed in Tartarus.

The blue glow surrounding him disappeared for a moment, and I let relief flood my senses. He wasn't gone. However, the aura returned quickly, it's glow just as, if not more, intense as it was pre-slap.

I slapped him again. "Don't give in to it!"

"I wanna sleep..." Raven mumbled, his body slowly going limp.

I couldn't let that happen. "Wake up, wake up, wake up!" I chanted, shaking him. I think I shook him too hard, however, because he fell sideways onto the couch.

From om his new position, I could clearly see Raven's green eyes. As I watched, his eyes slipped closed, his blue aura growing. Then, as soon as his eyes were closed, the aura exploded.

Suddenly, we were falling out of the sky.

 **Hey guys! Next update is Sunday, regular 4 days. After that, it's gonna get crazy. I have midterms starting Friday the 13th (horrible day for midterms to start, I know) and I'm taking next week off to study. I'll give you soon he full details with the next update. :)**


	53. Chapter 53

**Hey guys! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter. :) To the person that proposed to their girlfriend on New Years, congrats! I'm so happy for you guys! I'm glad she said yes. :) To the person that sat on the couch like I did, I do like eggnog, but only the vanilla kind. I had apple juice on New Years Eve. My mom and sister fell asleep, and I had to keep waking them up too. So I feel you. ;) To the person that hates the cowards, I also hate the cowards who are too cowardly to sign into their accounts before they decide to piss someone off. It makes my job of hunting them down and skinning them alive so much harder. It's very annoying. To the coward previously mentioned: Thanks for telling me to go die in a hole. I really appreciate it. At least I know that you care enough to actually tell me yourself, oh no wait. I don't. You're a fucking coward who hide their username with "Fuck you", which you also decided to put in your message. Thanks for the reminder, but I didn't need it. Also, maybe you could try improving your vocabulary. I don't mean to insult you like you insulted me and hell knows how many other people, but using the words "never ever ever" makes you sound like a boy band pop star that's washed up at the age of twenty. Not to offend any twenty year old washed up boy band pop stars. I hope you, whoever the fuck you are, have a wonderful life that isn't ruined by the karma you get for telling an impressionable kid to go die in a hole. Who knows, maybe the next person you tell that to will actually take their own life because you don't give a fuck about them. Karma's a bitch, and I've been told that so am I. On an unrelated note, everyone else, I own nothing, but please enjoy this wonderful chapter! :)**

 **PS: I will _never_ stop writing. Even If I'm terrible:**

 **Zoë's POV**

 _From om his new position, I could clearly see Raven's green eyes. As I watched, his eyes slipped closed, his blue aura growing. Then, as soon as his eyes were closed, the aura exploded._

 _Suddenly, we were falling out of the sky._

Someone was screaming. I think it was either Diamond or Sunny, but for all I know, it could've been Luke, or even Raven, although I doubt it was Raven. He wasn't in the right frame of mind as it was; he was probably laughing, not screaming.

With a jolt, the aircraft crashed into the ground. Everyone had fallen to the floor, but I was the first one to manage to regain footing. Shakily, I opened a door to the outside, taking in the view of Chaos's planet.

I could see see the mountain with the palace located on it not far in the distance. Feeling hope coursing through my geins, I turned back inside. "Is everyone okay? If everyone can walk, we should be able to make it to the bottom of the mountain before nightfall. From there, we can easily get back inside."

I got three responses. Luke grunted out a positive answer. Diamond groaned slightly before heaving herself up off the floor and saying that she was fine. Sunny looked at me and said that she had some scrapes, but nothing that would limit her walking abilities too greatly.

I heard nothing from Raven.

That alone got me worried. Combined with the fact that he's currently not... All there, and possibly also a tad bit homicidal, I decided it was in everyone's best interest to find him, and quickly.

"Raven?" I called quietly, cautious. I wanted to find him, but I didn't want to find him when he was ready to blow something up or shoot lasers from his fingers or something. That would spell disaster for me, and it would probably ruin our chance of getting to the palace by nightfall.

After er receiving no answer, I began to walk through the rubble that used to be a prized aircraft. Glass was strewn about the floor, along with pieces of the walls that had made a particularly hard impact against the trees. I didn't see any bodies.

I wasn't worried about the room where we all were, because I had Luke searching it, as he was the least scratched up from the sudden impact. And Luke was the least likely to get killed if Raven was suddenly homicidal.

I walked around the remnants of the aircraft, searching for signs but receiving none. Finally, I stepped into the last room. I looked around quickly, since there wasn't a lot of debris to look through, when a blast of blue light lit up the room.

Then everything was dark.

 **Hey guys! I'm so sorry it's so short! I hurt one of my arms while sledding yesterday (I wiped out in an epic failure) and my arm is black and blue. It hurts a lot, so it was really difficult to type. I tried to type with one hand, but it takes forever. So I'm really sorry. I'm even more sorry for what I'm about to say next. Here goes nothing: next update will be the 20th. Yeah, I know that's almost two weeks away, but I have a shit load of studying to do. I'm taking all honors classes. Cause I'm an idiot. Anyways, I'm really sorry for everything. Please don't hate me for that announcement guys. See you real soon! (Sorta)**


	54. Chapter 54

**Hey guys! I'm back! I'm so sorry I was gone for so long, but midterms and studying and stuff took up so much time and energy. I'm still exhausted from it, which is why it's good that I didn't go to a school dance tonight. Besides, the last one was pretty bad. The dancers were doing... Explicit dance moves, and the DJ only played rap. And again, I'm tired. ;) Anyways, how've you guys been while I was gone? Lovely, I hope. Also, thanks for all the reviews last chapter! Sorry for all the little typos in my chapters. My stupid iPod sometimes decides that after the word "from", there needs to be a random "om". It's stupid. And old. I'd love to get a new one, but till then, I'm sorry, but you'll have to deal with the "from om" stuff. I am sorry though. Ok, I think I've talked (Er, typed?) long enough. Let's get on with the chapter! :) I own nothing, but please enjoy this long awaited chapter. :)**

 **PS: My arm feels much better, thanks guys. :)**

 **Zoë's POV**

 _I walked around the remnants of the aircraft, searching for signs but receiving none. Finally, I stepped into the last room. I looked around quickly, since there wasn't a lot of debris to look through, when a blast of blue light lit up the room._

 _Then everything was dark._

I woke up lying on the floor. My head was pounding and something sharp was digging into my back. But I couldn't move, no matter how hard I tried.

As I struggled (and failed) at moving, a face appeared above mine, a good three feet away. Black hair dangled down towards my face, not long enough to brush my skin, however. Glassy, dark eyes stared down at me. His lips were curled into a sneer.

"Look at the little huntress attempt to be freed. You can't move, girl." He spat the last word out in disgust. "I made sure of that, with my paralyzing spell. But don't worry, I won't hurt you."

The he words themselves sounded reassuring, but the cold look in his eyes was anything but. I wanted to speak, ask him what he was _really_ going to do, when he spoke anyways.

"Not much, at least." The smirk on his face told me that that was going to be an understatement.

Raven, or whoever this creep was inhabiting his body via the Black Heart, stood up and disappeared from my field of vision. He returned a moment later, smirking wickedly down at me.

Part of me was holding out hope that Luke or Diamond or _someone_ was going to burst in and then Raven would be back to normal. Avoiding and ignoring me for two years, I could just about handle. But being tortured at his hands? Yeah, right. No girl wants her first crush to literally crush her back. (As in, breaking bones, maybe crushing an organ or two as well.)

Raven must've read my mind. "Door's busted," he smirked. "No way else in here."

The door was fine when I walked in. That basturd controlling my friend must've done something to it. If only I could see anything!

He looked down at me, bending over slightly. If I could move, I would've swept his feet out from under him already. Instead, it took all my effort to simply blink.

"Seeing as how your friends aren't coming, why don't we have a little fun?" He sneered. "I haven't been fully unleashed, or even tasted this amount of freedom, in two years. Ever since you managed to use _words_ to control me in Tartarus. That's part of the reason you're paralyzed. That, and it makes everything so much easier.

"Now, since I've been restrained for so long, I really need to test my powers. I could just fire blasts of energy into the atmosphere, or go kill a tree or something, but that's counter-productive. I might need to use these powers in a fight." I hated to admit it, but the sick creature in Raven was actually sounding borderline _sane_.

Until he continued talking. "That's where you come in," he told me. "If I use my powers in a fight, I have to know how each affects a person."

Horror started to seep into my body. Was he suggesting what I thought he was suggesting?!

"I'm going to observe their affects on you." He grinned. "Consider yourself lucky; you're the first person that's going to feel the searing pain of these powers, although j can assure you that you wont be the last."

It didn't look like anyone as coming to save me. Against my wishes, I started to panic. Was he going to end up killing me?

'I don't wanna die... Sometimes wish I've never been born at all...'

What an inopportune time to start singing 'Bohemian Rhapsody' in my head... I wasn't even a huge fan of Queen, long ago.

My mind was a whirlwind of panic and lyrics from random songs that suddenly fit my situation. That's probably why I didn't notice that my limited range of vision was showing me something else.

I was still staring at a ceiling, lying on my back, but the sharp pain in my back was gone. (Although it still felt sore.) This ceiling was brown while the other was gray.

Raven's face loomed over mine again. "You ready to start?!"

I wanted to shout "no!" and spit in his face. Instead, all I could do was lay there limply.

He grinned at me. "Let's get started, then!"

 **Hey guys! Not the longest chapter, but I spent most nights and days studying for midterms. Sorry! Next chapter is in the regular 4 days, so update is Tuesday. Unless anything big comes up, and I'll leave an AN to tell you. Stay awesome, guys! :)**


	55. Chapter 55

**Hey guys! How's it going? (I enjoy answers to that question; I like to know how people are. I'll settle with a simple "I'm fine, thanks".) Thanks for all the reviews last chapter, guys! This is chapter is going to hopefully be a torture scene. I'm not so great at writing those though, so... Don't hate me if it turns into more of a "he zapped me and it hurt" kind of thing. Sorry in advance... Anyways, I own nothing. But hey, please enjoy this chapter regardless of whether or not my torture scene isn't actually torture! :)**

 **PS: In case you didn't get the memo, this chapter contains TORTURE. If you don't like that stuff, then just skip to the end. I'll have a mini summary there, so people don't miss important stuff.**

 **Zoë's POV**

 _I wanted to shout "no!" and spit in his face. Instead, all I could do was lay there limply._

 _He grinned at me. "Let's get started, then!"_

i was still paralyzed, so I didn't even see the first shot. I did, however, feel it.

It started as a pinch, a speck of pain. Then it grew until it became an unbearable fire of agony coursing through my bloodstream. I desperately wanted to scream, to do something to relieve this pain, but I could do nothing.

After what felt like eternity, the pain slowly began to dissolve. It left my body a grain at a time, so gradual that I could hardly feel the difference. However, once I was no longer in pain, I allowed myself to mentally breathe a sigh of relief. It was short-lived.

"I can already tell that this will be no fun," came a voice to my right. Raven's voice. "I'll unparalyze your body so you'll be able to thrash around. Don't worry, I won't do anything to your mouth so you won't be able to strain your voice my screaming. And you don't want to fall off the table, so ill add these helpful chains."

I felt cold metal snaking across my arms and legs, locking me in position. Then a zap hit my stomach, and I could wiggle my fingers again. I turned my head to the side, staring at my tormentor. No matter hard I tried, I couldn't open my mouth to spit insults and/or coax him out of this.

With a sickly smile, he said, "Now, let's try this again."

He stepped back a half step and spread his hands apart. Between his fingers grew a foot and a half long, razor sharp dagger of electricity. I tried to brace myself for the pain, knowing it would be impossible to escape this one.

A second later, the bolt of electricity pierced my stomach. It felt like a dagger slicing through my flesh, but when it was about to become a fatal wound, the electric current it carried was dispersed through my body. The hair lining my arms stood on edge and the hair on my head frizzed out. With the current came a horrible, searing pain traveling through my bloodstream.

I must've passed out at some point, because when I opened my eyes again, the room was darker. Night was falling, if it hadn't come already. I was about to turn my head to the sides to see if I could spot a window, but a voice interrupted me.

"I see the sleeping beauty has finally awakened." It was Raven. I twisted my head to the left to stare at him. "I continued the torture without you conscious. It wasn't as fun as watching it when you are conscious, but it was still entertaining to watch your body twitch and rock in pain with you unconscious of anything."

He took a step closer, sighing. "Sadly, I decided to take a break. I think my continued torture was delaying your awakening, which was very disappointing." He took another step closer, beginning to smile wickedly. He was now close enough to touch me. "Plus, I didn't want you to miss the next activity I have in store."

I eyed him suspiciously, wondering what it was he had in mind. If the last round was so painful that i passed out from it, then I feared what he would do now.

As i laid my back and glared up at my tormentor, he began to drag a finger down my cheek, almost caressing it. It would've seemed loving if he wasn't being so harsh, practically drawing blood with his nails.

"You're so beautiful," he murmured. For a moment, I thought this was a dream, that I was still unconscious or this was another fantasy. How could he go from cruel to caring in 0.4 seconds? It was either a dream, or he was really back to normal.

Suddenly, a sadistic going entered those dark green eyes. "I wonder how you'd ok without these pesky clothes on?"

My eyes widened in horror. I wanted to scream. No! No! No! This had to be a dream, a horrific nightmare.

Raven's fingers danced closer to the edge of my pants. I struggled with all my might, but I couldn't wiggle free or even stall him. Just as his fingers found the band of my pants, I let out a noise between a whimpered plea and a cry of pain.

Suddenly, Raven's eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed backwards. I wanted to let out a sigh of relief. I was safe...

For now.

 **Hey guys! Sorry it's kinda short, but I'm not great at writing torture. So I apologize. Next chapter is in the usual 4 days, so Saturday. See you then!**


	56. Chapter 56

**Hey guys! How's it going? im glad people were doing well as of last chapter! Math midterms are terrible in general; no one would blame you for failing, in all honesty. I'm also doing well, thanks for asking. :) Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! Ok, first: I'm sorry all the chapters are so short. I'm trying to improve on that, but in case you can't tell... I haven't been doing a great job at that. Second: Yeah, my torture scene was pretty terrible. I was kinda running out of stuff to write about and I didn't want to just end it after practically nothing. So i tried to continue it and... _That_ happened. Sorry to anyone that didn't like it. It was onkh an attempt, it wasn't actual rape, because that would've had to have been censored (cause this is rated T and I don't want to change that) and that's honestly just nasty. Anyways, enough of this. I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter! :) **

**Zoë's POV**

 _Suddenly, Raven's eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed backwards. I wanted to let out a sigh of relief. I was safe..._

 _For now._

An uncertain amount of time passed. There wasn't a clock in the room, so I couldn't be sure if minutes had passed or if hours had passed.

For all i knew, I could've been cHained up in a room that reacted to time differently. Maybe an hour in here was a day in the outside world, like the Lotus Casino.

Maybe an hour in here was a _year_ in the outside world.

The possibilities of everything kept tumbling through my mine, each one more terrible than the last.

Maybe Luke, Diamond and Sunny weren't trying to save me. Maybe they all were secretly glad I was gone.

Maybe the Olympians followed us unknowingly, waiting to get us for that stunt Raven pulled in the throne room with Ares. Maybe they had killed everyone and made them fade, because we're all immortals now.

Maybe–

My inner panics were stopped by a low groan coming from the floor semi-underneath and semi-next to me. I froze, knowing it was coming from Raven. But which Raven? Dr. Jekyll or Mr. Hyde?

He slowly rose to his feet next to me, his back facing me. His posture and stance gave nothing away. For all I could tell, he had lost all memories in general. (Oh Chaos, please tell me that didn't happen.)

If only my mouth wasn't still paralyzed shut, my lips frozen like lead. I could've... Done something! Anything to end this horrible, suspenseful silence.

And then he turned around.

When he fell, his hood must've flopped around and covered his head, because now the black fabric covered his eyes. I couldn't look into the revealing green orbs and tell by their color what was going through his mind.

I settled with the next best thing that was likely to get a response; I arched my eyebrow, almost mockingly.

Beneath the hood, I saw Raven scowl at me, through in fury or confusion, I couldn't tell. "What?" It sounded like it was said out of confusion, not fury.

I rolled my eyes. It's not like I could speak. He made sure of that.

Raven looked me up and down. "Who chained you to this table? Whoever did that must be a jerk."

I rolled my eyes again. This was obviously normal Raven, and he had no clue that he had just lost control for the longest period of his life.

When i said nothing, Raven announced, "I'll free you, Midnight. Don't worry."

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes again. Took him long enough to figure it out.

With a single slash of a sword, Raven cut through the chains binding my person. He helped me up, then inspected me for a hidden gag.

When he realized there wasn't one, he scowled at me, looking bewildered and hurt. "Why won't you talk to me? There's no gag. Did I do something? Just tell me what I did so I can fix it!"

I rolled my eyes and shakily got to my feet. Carefully, I then padded over to the door. It refused to budge. I wanted to scream or sigh or anything, but I couldn't. I tried to force myself to calm down. I need a way to communicate with him while my mouth is still refusing to work. Maybe... Maybe he could use his powers to help me! If only he could understand with that thick head of his.

I paced back and forth a few times before the dust stirring up caused my eyes to water. I couldn't cough, no matter how much my body demanded it.

Wait... The dust!

With Raven watching me, confused, I hurried over to the wall. Just as I had hoped, it was covered with a fine coating of dust from the crash. Perfect!

In the dust, I began to write a message that Raven read aloud as I wrote.

"Mouth... Paralyzed... Use... Powers... Help..." He read, still sounding puzzled. "You're mouth is paralyzed and you want me to use my powers to help you?"

I nodded enthusiastically. Took him long enough to figure it out.

"Wait, so you aren't mad at me?"

I rolled my eyes. That idiot...

Raven seemed to understand my frustration without me having to use words. "Oh! I'll un-paralyze your mouth in a jiffy!" Then he frowned slightly. "I'm not so great at this though..."

I threw my hands up in the air.

"Okay, okay, I'll try anyways!" He promised, spreading out his hands inFront of himself. His eyes slipped closed and he concentrated.

A small bolt of electricity flew from his fingertips and was absorbed into my body. This one didn't hurt, though.

"Oh thank Chaos," I breathed, feeling the words spill from my mouth. I smiled at Raven, walking towards him.

Then I slapped him across the face. "That's for almost raping me," I growled. "You don't want to see what else I should have planned for you."

 **Hey guys! Next chapter is in five days on Thursday. It should be the regular 4, but I'm taking one day off from writing. I'm not quite sure why, but I'm seriously sleep deprived. I almost fell asleep seven times tonight just while writing the last 300-400 words of this chapter. (And I almost fell asleep in my church mass tonight, which would've been SO awkward.) Anyways, see you Thursday! and I'm sorry for taking the extra day, but I kinda need it.**


	57. Chapter 57

**Hey guys! How's it going? Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! I totally forgot that I had my first All State band practice this week! I remembered Sunday night, right before bed. Then I figured I should take my mini day off that day after band. Which ends at about 8:30 pm on a Wednesday. And is still a good hour and a half minute drive from my house. So I'm still tired, but I'll live. I don't really have anything else to say... So I own nothing, I guess! (Wow, short AN, right?!) But please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **Zoë's POV**

 _Then I slapped him across the face. "That's for almost raping me," I growled. "You don't want to see what else I should have planned for you."_

Raven appeared to be shocked, but neither of us had much time to dwell on it. Suddenly, someone as banging on the door.

"Midnight?! Midnight, are you in there?!" It was difficult to tell who the voice belonged to, but I thought it sounded male.

"I'm in here!" I called back.

"Are you near the door?"

The question took me by surprise. "... No. Why?"

"Stand back!" The voice commanded, not answering my question.

However, no matter my inner frustrations, I made sure to stand back. I was against the back wall, far from the door. Raven was a few yards away from me, against the same wall. He still looked bewildered, although because of what, I went quite sure.

"Okay!" I called, letting whoever was on the other side know that I was away from the door. They didn't seem to care about Raven. Maybe they didn't know he was in here.

A second after I called out, the door came crashing down. In rushed several people, all led by a familiar African-American man.

"Chaos!" I cried.

"Midnight!" He exclaimed, hurrying towards me. "Thank the gods you're alright! Hen you didn't show up yesterday, even after three of your team mates did, I tried to teleport to you, but I couldn't! It took us an entire day to find you, even with the help of your three team mates. But we don't know where–"

"Dad?"

Chaos turned to Raven, looking surprised. "Raven?"

"I... What... You..." He tried, before signing and attempting to restart. "How's you get here?"

Chaos stared at Raven, still surprised. "I think a better question is how did _you_ get here?"

Raven began to look frustrated, whether with himself or Chaos I did not know. "I don't know how I got here."

"Son, that doesn't make sense..." Chaos tried to say. "You have to have gotten here somehow. You must remember something."

"I don't." The words sounded harsh and clipped coming from his mouth, although I could tell that Raven didn't honestly intend for the bite that accompanied his words.

Chaos goanced briefly at me before continuing his mock investigation. "Do you know how the plane crashed?"

Slight hesitation before, "No." The pause was barely a millisecond too long, but Chaos picked up on it immediately.

"You hesitated."

" _No_ , I didn't."

"You know what happened to the plane." It wasn't a question this time.

"No, I _don't_." His voice was getting harsher with each statement.

I had to intervene. "Chaos, I think–"

"How did you cause the plane to crash?" Chaos interrupted, his eyes never leaving Raven's.

"I _don't_ _know_. Because I _didn't do it_."

Chaos's previously calm voice was beginning to sound frustrated. "Look, I know you did it. I won't be mad if you just tell me how you did it!"

" _I don't know!_ "

I saw the impending explosion before anyone else did. Raven's eyes glowed blue and when I averted my eyes, I saw that the palms of his clenched fists were glowing too. How long had I missed it with his clenched fists?

Berode I could stop either one of them and try to help/force the father-son duo to make peace with each other, the explosion went off.

I swore internally. I was just a two seconds too late.

The explosion originated somewhere between Raven and Chaos. Chaos was blasted back by the sudden, unexpected force. I think I heard his body slam into a wall.

I was better off, but only slightly. I was saved from a small force of the explosion due to the angle of Raven's body in comparison to mine. He deflected a small bit of the force, but I still went flying. I knocked into another body in the room, probably one of Chaos's soldiers, and squished them against the floor.

After the ringing in my ears stopped and my eyes could see again, I took in the damage done to the room. If it was in bad shape before, it was in shambles now. The walls and ceiling were beginning to crumple, the wood groaning like a kI'd that found out his annoying cousin is coming to visit.

The only person or thing left standing and appearing untouched was Raven. He had a look of shock on his face as he gazed around at the destruction. His eyes lingered on a pool of dark red liquid decorating the floor. It hadn't been there previously.

I saw his mouth open and close for a moment. Then he finally spit out, "I'm a monster." He was looking at the man the liquid most likely came from. "I have to go."

In the blink of an eye, he was gone.

 **Hey guys! Sorry its sHort. It was gonna be longer but I'm just really tired... I gotta sleep. I almost fell asleep in class for the first (legit) time ever today. It so bad... And my boyfriend was sick, so he couldn't wake me up. (He's my science partner.) Anyways, next update is Tuesday cause of Super Bowl Sunday. Thanks!**


	58. Chapter 58

**Hey guys! How's it going? Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! :) I have to be honest. I was rooting for the Atlanta Falcons to win the Super Bowl. It's a shame that the Patriits won in overtime. I hate the Patriots, in all honesty, even though my boyfriend, best friend, and practically everyone I know is a major Patriots fan. That's probably the one thing my boyfriend and I "argue" about: football teams. He doesn't get how I like the NY Giants and the Chicago Bears (both of which have beaten the Patriots in at least one Super Bowl) and I don't get how he likes the Patriots. Especially after Tom Brady's Deflate Gate scandal. (lol) Anyways, enough sports. Let's get on with the story! After all, that's what we're all here for, right? So I own nothing, but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **Zoë's POV (Recap only)**

 _I saw his mouth open and close for a moment. Then he finally spit out, "I'm a monster." He was looking at the man the liquid most likely came from. "I have to go."_

 _In the blink of an eye, he was gone._

 **Percy's POV**

I couldn't believe what I had just done. I thought I could control it but... The scene in the crashed air craft proved I couldn't. Even when I thought everything was under my own control...

"I cant even trust myself," I breathed out loud, taking in the cool air of the balcony I had teleported to. This time, I made sure I locked every door and window. To prevent any further invasion, I used what powers I could control to create a magical force field around the entire balcony. No one could teleport in or even get in without my permission, and I wasn't giving that to anyone.

I can just stay here forever and never hurt anyone else again.

 _Stop being such a prissy_ , my mind spat. _If you lose control again, everyone is going to get hurt. Evil you won't listen to normal you_.

As much as I hated to admit it, I had a point.

But what was I supposed to do? Like I had told myself, I'm just a prissy.

If I could, I think my brain would've sighed and rolled it's eyes. _You train yourself, idiot. You learn to control yourself and your powers. Whatever Luke and Chaos are trying to tell you isn't working. Only you know yourself_.

The he point was driven further by the fact that I was literally getting advice from myself. Is this considered talking to myself if it all happens in my head? And is it considered listening to voices if the voices are my own?

I took a brief moment to mourn the loss of my sanity. It would be dearly missed, more so by others than by myself.

What was left of my rationality told me that I had to start training myself, now, while I was alone and unable to hurt people.

I didn't want to listen to the voice in my head, but I figured that it wouldn't hurt. My sanity had already passed, so I guess hearing and listening to voices wasn't too far in the future anyways.

"Ok!" I said to myself, trying to should more cheerful and energized than I actually felt. Although why, I'm not sure. Maybe if I sounded cheerful externally, it would convince my brain to get with the program and be happy too? How am I supposed to know? I'm sure I'm a certifiable madman.

"Time to train... For life!" I finished enthusiastically, not quite sure what exactly I was training _for_ , but knowing that I had to train to control these god awful powers I was given.

"But how do I train?" I mused out loud. "Attempt to blast plants? Listen to a soundtrack of things that enrage me and try not to destroy it?" I pondered it a moment more before grinning to myself. "It's as good a plan as any!"

After i set up a line of potted plants, I concentrated on my heart beat. If I'm trying to control my dark powers, that's as good a place as any to start, right?

Turns out, that was an excellent place to start. I concentrated, and the voices in my head stilled for a moment, leaving me incredibly lonely. But before I could break my concentration and return my invisible friends, a bolt of electricity shot from my hands.

"Holy shit!" I exclaimed as I watched the bolt of lightning shoot from my hands and destroy a potted plant a few yards away. As the ceramics lay sizzling on the ground, I gaped at the destruction I had caused.

"Geez..." I breathed, in awe. I had done that? And I wasn't even properly self-trained yet!

By the end of the day (or what I deemed the end of the day), I had destroyed nearly every pot. My aim had improved from hoping to hit something (anything) to getting the right shot nearly every time.

I left the broken ceramic chunks to lay on the ground. Using some basic Chaos powers of creation, I conjured up a pillow and blanket for myself. I could rough it up, but I figured I needed to work on my Chaos powers too, so why not get a little practice in?

I found myself a nice flat ledge to sleep on. With the pillow under my head and my blanket to cover most of my body, I curled up to sleep off the exhaustion of the first day of self-training. I had a busy week or so ahead of me.

 **Hey guys! Ok, next chapter is Friday. Regular 4 day update. See you then! :) Keep being awesome, until then, okay? ;)**


	59. Chapter 59

**Hey guys! How's it going? Hope you're all doing awesome! (Cause no one tells me :P so I'll just assume you're awesome.) To respond to some reviews: Don't worry, there should hopefully be some signs of romance in these next few chapters. ;) Hint, hint. (More than a hint.) Also, I'll try to make chapters longer but... School is hard, and family time is important, and a combination of the two leaves my personal life a bit off to the side sometimes. This gets put on a back burner for a few hours. (About 22.5 on a good day.) I'll try to find more time though. I'll try. Anyways** **, let's wrap this up! I own nothing, but please enjoy this chapter anyways! :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _I found myself a nice flat ledge to sleep on. With the pillow under my head and my blanket to cover most of my body, I curled up to sleep off the exhaustion of the first day of self-training. I had a busy week or so ahead of me._

 _Exactly two weeks later_

So, training took longer than I had expected. It seemed to be worth it though, as I concluded my final test.

A line of cardboard people and monsters stood across the balcony from me. Their beady black eyes watched me. Bringing up my hands, I proceeded to shoot a lightning bolt, energy, my blue fire, and a bolt of heat at the boards. The bolt of heat was a new power I had (accidentally) discovered. It allows me to shoot a nearly invisible heated compression of air at a target, and the molecules of the object that the air directly touched first would begin to either melt or burn, depending on the object.

After my test was over, I sat down on the ledge that I had turned into my bed to catch my breath. I couldn't fully test whether or not my meditation skills had worked (I decided to take a page from Doctor Bruce Banner's book of anger management) so I figured I'd just have to hope.

Once my breath returned to me, I hesitated a moment longer. Was I ready to rejoin society? No clue. Was I ready to face Chaos again, after what caused me to leave in the first place? Probably not. Was I ready to see Midnight again? My brain said " _hell_ no!", but my heart argued " _hell_ yea!" I'm going to have to either get them to agree, or see a doctor.

Probably the latter, unfortunately.

With a final look around the balcony that had become my makeshift training area, sleeping area, and bathing area, I prepared to take down the shield.

The shield crumbled quickly, much more quickly than one would have suspected if they could've seen the impenetrable force field.

I idly wondered who would find me first, with the shield down now. Well, whoever is looking for me, I won't make it easy.

 **Zoë's POV (after the two weeks of Percy's training)**

"Chaos, where do you think he could be?" I asked, looking at the distraught man in front of me.

We were in his office, Chaos seated behind his desk and I standing in front of it. Chaos had his head in his hands, looking the picture of defeat.

"I don't know!" He exclaimed. "We've looked everywhere. He can't be found. He doesn't want to be found." The creator sighed. "This is all my fault."

"No it isn't!" I protested.

"Yes it is. I pushed him too far, I made him leave. I–"

"Did you force him to flee that aircraft?" I interrupted, deciding to screw the consequences.

"... No..."

"Did you force him to go off the grid?" I asked.

"... No."

"Did you force him to not want to be found?"

"No."

I wanted to smirk smugly, knowing Chaos had taken the bait, but I let my face remain slightly impassive for the moment. "Then why are you beating yourself up about this?"

The he answer I received came with a slight hesitation. "He's my son."

I was prepared to rebuke that. "He's also over 20 years old, whether he looks it or not. He isn't a child, Chaos. He makes his own decisions; he's stubborn like that. There's nothing you could've done to stop him if he wanted to leave."

The creator of the universe stared at me. I had finally let out a small smirk as I stood before the desk, arms crossed. After a moment, the ancient being smirked back at me.

"You miss him," Chaos stated plainly, leaving no room for argument.

I did try to protest, though. After I got over my shock.

"W-What?! Of course not! Chaos, are you taking crack?! Just say no!" I exclaimed, trying to form some sort of defense.

If anything, Chaos's smirk grew. "You _so_ miss him."

"No I don't! I'm just worried about the idiot!" Immediately after realizing I said that, I wanted to clap a hand over my mouth.

Chaos's eyes sparkled mischievously. "Oh, so you're worried about him too? What an interesting development."

"Chaos!" I exclaimed, indignant. I could feel my cheeks heating up.

"Oh, it's not a big deal," he said, grinning. "I won't tell him."

"You better not," I threatened, pointing a menacing finger at him. He raised his hands in playful surrender, a grin still on his face.

"I swear Chaos, if you breathe a word about this to anyone, I'll–"

There was a knock on the door, cutting off my threat.

"Come in!" Chaos called.

Luke rushed in. "The alarms are going off! I think he's been spotted!" He panted, breathless.

"He? You mean..."

"Yes. Per-Raven," Luke clarified, almost slipping up on his friend's name.

I hurried over to Luke. "Where?"

He looked me in the eyes for a moment. Then he said, "Follow me."

 **Hey guys! Next chapter is Wednesday. I think I'm gonna take Valentine's Day off. Not for personal romantic reasons, just so I get a chance to read some nice fluffy fanfictions. :) Cause that's what the best people do on Valentine's Day.**


	60. Chapter 60

**Hey guys! Happy late Valentine's Day! :) Hows it going for everyone? Wonderful, I hope, because no one answers me. :P How were your Valentine's Days? Anyone have a special Valentine or something? My boyfriend unexpectedly got me a large box of Dove chocolates with these either romantic or hilarious messages in them. It was really sweet, especially since I told him not to get me anything. He's such a dork like that though. :) Anyways, thanks for all the reviews last chapter! Ill try to keep the plot moving along, but I'm not very good at that... So I apologize. :( On a different subject, I'm cool with anyone else using some of this stuff for their own stories/fanfics. But do you think you could give me a little credit? I'd love just a "some ideas/materials taken from Black Hearted Warrior by Izzybella12" or something like that. I'd really appreciate that if you do borrow ideas or something. But I'm cool with the borrowing! I'd love to read your fanfics, too. Just shoot me a PM and I'd be more than glad to read it! (You may have to PM me regularly for updates though; I can't for the life of me remember to check.) Anyways, guys, I own nothing but please enjoy this lovely chapter! :)**

 **Zoë's POV**

 _I hurried over to Luke. "Where?"_

 _He looked me in the eyes for a moment. Then he said, "Follow me."_

We ran through the corridors and out of the palace entirely. "Where are we going, Luke?" I asked as we ran.

"To find Raven! He's here in the town, our report says!"

I shut up after that, eyes searching around for my lost friend. There was a little boy playing with what looked like a dog, a blind man sitting on a stool against a wall, and a woman carrying a bag of groceries, along with several others.

"I don't think he's here," i stated helplessly. Then, suddenly, I saw a man with black hair up ahead. He appeared to be the right height... And he had a hood on his shirt!

"I think I see him!" I exclaimed to Luke, pointing to the man. "There!"

Together, we raced after the man.

 **Percy's POV**

I watched as Midnight and Luke chased after the man that they thought was me. Smirking, I lifted my dark sunglasses from my face and reclined against the old wall. "This stool is more comfortable than I imagined," I murmured to myself.

"Kid," I called out to a little boy with his dog after I replaced my sunglasses. The boy walked over, his dog in between us. I stood up.

"Would you like this stool? You look like your family could use a new stool of this quality." I stood and gestured to the stool I had been sitting on, eying the ragged boy from behind my dark shades. I tried not to smile when his eyes widened.

"Thank you, kind sir! This is most generous of you! What could I do to repay this favor?" He asked. Wow, a kid with manners. Chaos's planet sure has everything.

"Nothing," I answered easily, smiling gently. "I don't need anything in return except your thanks."

The boy grinned at me. "Thank you again, sir."

I smiled, waving a hand as I began to walk away. "Have a nice day, kid."

The kid probably forgot that I was "blind" because he waved after me, hut said nothing. Or maybe he knew I was faking it. Either way, if i asked him, it'd make me seem suspicious.

Using my walking stick to check that there wasn't in front of me (further enhancing my disguise as a blind man), I walked away and disappeared into the crowd, traveling away from Midnight and Luke.

 _Several days later_

I spent the last few days exploring the town, meeting and interacting with the people. I posed not only as the blind man, but also as a man bound in a wheelchair, a man with a broken arm, a deaf man, and a mentally unstable man, talking to "hallucinations". (I of course knew there was nothing there, but no one else has to know that.) I usually wore sunglasses, a different pair each time, or changed my eye color using my Chaos powers. I saw Midnight and Luke a few times after the first time, but no more than once a day.

That day, I was a man with a splinted leg. The walking stick I had used as the blind man became the cane I used as this limping man. No one spared me a second glance as I hobbled into the palace. It was time to come home.

I made my way through the hallways, my blue eyes and almost-brown hair throwing off any suspicion that I was the missing heir.

After several minutes of limping along, I found the door to Chaos's office. I paused for a moment, wondering if I should knock or something. Then I shrugged. This is an office. I should be fine just barging in. After all, I'm his son. He wouldn't blast me or whatever for just barging in after being missing for almost three weeks.

Right?

Oh well. I'll just be sure to have my ghost haunt him forever if he accidentally kills me.

Throwing aside my concerns for self-preservation, I shoved open the door to Chaos's office, a pair of shades covering my blue eyes and my brown hair flopping over one eye completely.

For a moment, no one noticed me because they were in the middle of a heated discussion.

From in front of Chaos's desk, Midnight shouted, "He has to be somewhere! He must know we're looking for him!"

Chaos was sitting behind his desk, looking the picture of defeat. He was hunched over, his head in his hands. "He obviously doesn't want to be found, Zoë. He would've appeared by now if he did."

Luke was standing next to Midnight on her right. He opened his mouth to say something, but must've caught a glimpse of me leaning on my cane out of the corner of his eye. "Guys..."

Midnight turned around, looking angrily at Luke before she followed his gaze. When she saw me, she gasped.

"How did you get in here?" She demanded.

I smirked. "I used the door."

Chaos looked up at me and drowned in confusion. "The door?" He glanced at the door and then back to me. "The door is enchanted. You have to be shown to the door at least once in order to see the door and enter."

This was news to me. The others waited for a response. Finally, I said, "Well, this is awkward."

Luke snorted, which was more positive than Midnight's glare or Chaos's stare.

I leaned heavily on my cane, pretending I needed it to stand. "Fine. I can help you with a problem, if you want."

 **Hey guys! So next chapter is going to be Monday. I have a party thjng Saturday with my cousins, and I also have a gig earlier that day. So if I'm not back late, I'll probably be exhausted. Sorry! Keep being awesome though. :)**


	61. Chapter 61

**Hey guys! How's it going? I'm pretty wonderful myself, if not also completely sleep deprived. Thanks for asking! :) Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! I'm sorry Valentine's Day seemed to suck for nearly everyone. Only a messed up person breaks up with someone on Valentine's Day. That's just not cool. Its one of those unspoken things you're supposed to never do. (I can't think up an example right now, but there are others.) And if you're single and don't even have a crush or something, and you're not in elementary school, Valentine's Day does really suck. Oh well onto a new topic now! I'm sorry the war and stuff isn't really going on yet. I'm trying really hard to keep the ball rolling, but I get caught up in all these little things I want to do... I really need to make more restraints for myself next time. Try a more detailed storyline map. (More detailed as in planned out. Not more stuff.) Stuff to keep in mind. Anyways, I own nothing! But please enjoy this chapter. :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _I leaned heavily on my cane, pretending I needed it to stand. "Fine. I can help you with a problem, if you want."_

Midnight narrowed her eyes at me. "What problem could you possibly help with?"

I rolled my eyes. "Chaos's heir, Raven, is missing. Everyone knows that," I stated, pretending it was old news. I knew that they had been trying their hardest to cover up their tracks, and having me say that they were wrong would shake them up and allow me, a "commoner" to "help".

Midnight gasped. "That's impossible!" She looked at Chaos. "No one knows that but a select few!"

I tsked. "Well, I doubt you included me in your select few."

Midnight glared at me, sure I was bluffing my way through this. Luke looked at me with a new light. Chaos stood up from behind his desk.

"You wish to help us," he clarified. "Do you know where my son is?"

I pretended to ponder this for a minute, when of course I knew where his son was. After a second, I said, "I think so. Point me to a map and I'll probably be able to point him out."

Midnight might have still looked suspicious about trusting me, but Luke looked giddy and hopeful like a schoolboy promised he could have a treat if he was good at the doctor's office. Chaos led me over to a large touchscreen map on a wall, the two following in our wake.

My adoptive father stared at my sunglasses and frowned slightly. "You might want to take those off so you can see the display."

"No, it's alright. I can see just fine."

"I insist," Chaos protested politely.

I had no choice but to take off my sunglasses then. It would seem suspicious if I didn't, and I wanted the opposite of that.

I turned to the map, my blue eyes taking it all in. Luke deflated slightly when he saw my eye color; no doubt he was hoping I was Raven. I could fool even my best friend...

A second after viewing the map of the city, I asked for one of the palace. Chaos snapped his fingers and one appeared on the screen. I pretended to analyze that one too before I spun around and gazed at my audience. "I know where he is," I announced.

"Where?" They all exclaimed in one simultaneous shout.

I turned back to the wall and smirked once I knew they couldn't see my face. Reaching a tan finger up to the map, I tapped the room nearly labeled "Chaos's Office".

"He's right there."

The three looked around the room, expecting Raven–me–to pop out of the shadows and shout "Boo!" When Raven didn't make a sudden appearance, they turned on me.

"He's not here," Luke stated, obviously confused.

"You lied!" Midnight accused. Chaos said nothing, either positive or negative.

I shook my head. "No I didn't."

"Raven isn't here," Luke repeated.

"Yes, he is," I argued. "He's right under your noses."

They all looked around again. I sighed. "He's right in front of you."

Their frowns came back to me. "I don't see him," Midnjght growled. "Where is he?!"

I spread my arms wide, putting myself on display. "Right in front of you."

"You're not..." Midnight started, but I began to change my appearance before their very eyes. First, my almost-brown hair darkened until it was inky black, it's normal color. Then my eyes slowly reverted from their blue hue to the usual green color, a shade somewhere between my former seagreen and an evergreen.

"Raven!" Luke exclaimed, rushing towards me and wrapping me in a manly hug.

"Raven!" Chaos shouted as well and scooped Luke and I up in a group hug. "I thought I lost you," he whispered just loud enough for me to hear, since his mouth was near my ear.

"Never, Dad," I whispered back.

I smiled at him and Luke once we broke apart. However, I wasn't sure how to react to the emotionless stare from Midnight.

Then she slowly began to walk towards me. "Midnight..." I started, but she interrupted me. I was expecting some form of physical abuse and I was not disappointed.

Quickly, Midnight punched me in the gut with all her strength, and that was a lot of strength from training with Chaos's army. Then she kicked me in the shin, causing me to double over from the gut punch and the shin kick.

When I was at my most vulnerable, Midnight came in for a hug. She rested her chin on my shoulder. " _Never_ do that again," she threatened lowly, so quiet I almost missed it. Then she said, "And stop calling me Midnight. That's a code name. My name is Zoë."

I smiled softly into her long black hair. "Okay, Zoë."

 **Hey guys! Next update will be Saturday (five days). It's school vacation week, and I don't know if anything will randomly pop up. So I'm gonna take that night just in case something does pop up. Then I'm not screwed over with getting it done with just three days. Sorry! But see you Saturday! :)**


	62. Chapter 62

**Hey guys! How's it going? Glad people are doing well. I'm still exhausted, but I think it's more of a mental exhaustion now instead of physical. I haven't been doing anything productive; I think it's getting to me. There's only so many times someone can play Danny Boy on the flute (among several other songs) before looking for something new to do. But I digress. Anyways, thanks for all the reviews last chapter! Holy crap there were a lot of reviews. I was checking them Tuesday night and nearly had a heart attack. The reloaded screen when from 910 to 941. O.O Woah. That was a seriously crazy difference. And yeah, they weren't all for chapter 61, but still. Holy crap that was crazy. Anyways, let's continue on with the story! :) I own nothing but please enjoy this lovely awaited chapter.**

 **Percy's POV**

 _I smiled softly into her long black hair. "Okay, Zoë."_

Once everyone had calmed down, Chaos called Bianca and Calypso to his office as well. When they arrived, we went through the entire "wow, you're alive!" hug-fest again. Of course, it wasn't completely hugs. (Don't let it be said that the hunt did not rub off on Bianca. My face still has a red hand on it.)

Finally, after our little squad had all (eventually) calmed down, Chaos stood behind his desk and addressed us. "I'm glad to see everyone back here together." He smiled at all of us but the smile remained on me longer than any of my friends. "But," he continued, "there is an urgent matter to attend to."

"What is it?" Bianca asked, worry coloring her tone.

"Whatever it is, we can handle it," Luke assured her, smiling gently. Bianca smiled back, albeit a bit shyly.

I hid a smirk, making a mental note to talk to Luke about that later.

"Luke is right; this should not be too difficult, but it will take some preparation. Midnight– Zoë– and I have completed most of the preparations in between search parties for a certain immortal," Chaos explained. I turned red when he tried to subtly mention me. "The Olympians prepare for war against us. They have no idea how to find us, and if they did, they wouldn't be able to get here without help from myself or access to one of our aircrafts."

"They don't have one of our aircrafts, do they?" Calypso asked anxiously.

Chaos shook his head. "Our spy says that they don't. Or if they do, it is extremely well hidden."

"Who is this spy? How do you know we can trust them?" I questioned curiously.

Chaos winked at me. I didn't get the joke. "Oh, this spy is very trustworthy. He's been a double agent, pretending to work for the Olympians while he has actually worked for me for over fifteen years. He too is an immortal, although he can die in battle like one of Artemis's hunters."

"And his name is...?" Zoë prompted a tad impatiently.

Chaos winked again, although I wasn't quite sure who he was winking at this time. I think he went off his rocker. I could tell from the confused glances my friends were sending each other that most (if not all) of them agreed with me.

"Ok... Let's move on," I decided. Chaos shrugged, grin fading. "Fine with me.

"The Olympians are preparing for war. Well, a few. We're going against Zeus, Poseidon, Athena, Hera, Apollo, Ares, and Demeter."

"Demeter? Why Demeter?" Calypso asked.

"Yeah, I thought she was pardoned," Bianca added, frowning.

Chaos shrugged. "She was pardoned. But our spy reports that she was aiding her brothers with their preparations for war."

I scowled. "We went through all that trouble to pardon her and this is what she did? That's disgusting."

"Calm down, Raven," Zoë comforted from her position standing next to me, placing a hand on my shoulder. Unwillingly, I felt my body relax slightly.

 _Don't be stupid_ , I mentally berated myself. _You're making a big deal out of nothing!_

Still, I couldn't help but let my muscles loosen under her touch.

I took a deep breath then dove back into the conversation. "So, we're prepared for war?"

"Yes," Chaos answered simply.

"You want us to be ready to fight?"

"Preferably."

I let fire, something I taught myself to control during my training, dance across my fingertips. "I'm in. When do you want us to be ready for?"

"Best case? Tomorrow night."

I glanced at the clock hanging on the wall above Chaos's desk. It read 8:30 p.m.. "Give me twenty-four hours, and I'll be ready."

"Me too," Zoë chimed in. I saw her looking at me out of the corner of my eye, but forced myself not to turn around. Especially not after those thoughts I had been having earlier. I couldn't ruin this friendship just because I got selfish and wanted more.

"Count me in!" Bianca cheered gleefully from her position next to Luke.

"Same!" Calypso added.

Everyone looked at Luke as he stroked his chin, seemingly deep in thought. "I don't know..." He drawled, his voice taking on a teasing tone. "Twenty-four hours... Will I have enough time to get ready? I have to look _fabulous_ if we're going to defeat the Olympians."

I couldnt help it; I cracked up laughing. Everyone else soon followed suit, including Luke and Chaos. Before heading off to war, laughter was something we desperately needed.

As soon as we all calmed down, Chaos dismissed us from his office with a few parting words. "I'll see you in twenty four hours. Use your time wisely!"

 **Hey guys! Sorry this was kinda short. I just didn't want to get to the next part and then leave you in the middle of a scene. Anyways, next chapter is Thursday. I have an All State band rehearsal Wednesday, and I won't be getting home that day until about 10:00 pm. I'm going to be falling asleep in world geography that Thursday, no doubt. (Which is okay, cause it's literally the easiest and most boring class ever. My grade average is a 102, but don't ask how it's even possible cause I don't know.) Anyways, see you Thursday! :)**


	63. Chapter 63

**Hey guys! Hows it going? I'm doing pretty well myself. I'm completely (physically** ** _and_** **mentally) exhausted though from my All State rehearsal last night. It was so late... I'm so tired... Anyways, thanks for all the reviews last chapter! Never underestimate my power of getting a good Perzoë relationship going in the remaining chapters of this fanfic. I've got some ideas. ;) (That's your cue to be worried.) Glad everyone is anticipating the coming war, but that's not this chapter. So sad. Anyways, I think that's enough me-commentary. Let's get on with the story! I own nothing but please enjoy this wonderous chapter. :)**

 **PS: Sorry, but no lemons in this story. Or probably any of my stories, if we're being honest. Feel free to take situations from here and make them into your own lemons though!**

 **Percy's POV**

 _As soon as we all calmed down, Chaos dismissed us from his office with a few parting words. "I'll see you in twenty four hours. Use your time wisely!"_

The first five hours passed quickly. I ate some good old cafeteria food and accomplished most of my packing. I didn't have much to pack, seeing as how this was just going to be a quick war and then we'd be back home. But I didn't want to burn through all my clothes that I brought and then be forced to wear ratty stuff, so I conjured up some more shirts and pants to pack.

Just as I was trying to stuff everything in the suitcase, a knock came from my door.

"One second!" I huffed. How embarrassing would it be to have someone catch me struggling to close a simple suitcase? I didn't want to deplete my energy so soon by using my powers, though.

There was more knocking, insistent this time.

"Gimme a minute," I called, an edge on my voice. I was already frustrated with this luggage; who would be impatient enough to keep knocking after I told them to wait? If it was that important, Dad would've just popped right into my room. He would've have bothered with formalities unless he was bored. And even then, he would've been able to wait a few hours when he sees me again, right?

The knocking continued. I growled, the sound reverberating in my throat, as I punched my suitcase in a small fit of rage and marched towards the front door.

Flinging open the door, I exclaimed, "What do you— Zoë?" I interrupted myself before finishing in a confused, slightly quieter voice.

Said huntress smiled shyly at me. (I know. Who ever thought shy and huntress would be in the same sentence? Let alone referring to Zoë!) "Hey, Raven. Can I come in? I need to talk to you."

I swallowed hard. I needed to talk to her too, but I was going to wait until after the war. I didn't want her to reject my love for her and then remember our last meeting as the time she rebuked my feelings.

Instead of actually saying any of that, I simply opened the door wider. "Come on in."

Zoë didn't speak again until after the door was closed. She was looking at my open suitcase, observing my efforts.

"You're packing a lot of clothes," she stated.

"Don't want to run out of clothes," I explained.

"You could always conjure up some more while we're there."

"Look, Zoë. Why are you here? You didn't just come to discuss packing strategies with me, did you?" I changed the subject, being to get impatient. I only had nineteen hours left. I didn't want to spend them talking nonsense.

Zoë turned away from my questioning gaze to stare at the pictures on my wall. She traced a finger along the frame of a picture of my mother.

"She's so pretty," Zoë breathed.

I took a deep breath to calm myself. "Zoë..." I promoted.

She turned back to me and visibly steeled her nerves. "Raven," she started, "I have a confession to make."

My mind immediately assumed the worst. Was she a spy? Was she a traitor? Was she going to lead us into a trap? I gulped. "What is it?" I asked, trepidation laced in my words.

Zoë took a deep breath. _This secret must be a big one_ , I thought. _It looks like it's eating away at her! What could it possibly be?_

"Raven..." Zoë said hesitantly. "I... I like you."

I blinked. "Yeah. I like you too, Zoë. That's why we're friends."

Zoë rolled her eyes and huffed out a laugh. "No, you idiot. I _like_ -like you."

I blinked again, not comprehending her words. Did the girl I have a crush on just say she likes me too? No, couldn't be.

I voiced this thought to Zoë. "You can't have a crush on me."

She he crossed her arms, glaring at me. "And why not?" She challenged.

"Cause that'd make things too easy!" I protested.

Zoë stared at me, disbelieving. "What are you _talking_ about?"

I shrugged. "Life is never this easy for me! It's much too coincidental that I have a crush on you, and you have a crush on me back. I was expecting you to secretly hate me or to have renewed your Huntress vows or something!" I explained.

Zoë stared at me and then blinked once. "So what you're saying is... You have a crush on me?"

I turned red. "Did I say that out loud?"

Zoë walked towards me, smirking slightly. Unconsciously, I took several steps back until I bumped into the wall behind me. Zoë kept walking until she was only a few inches from me, dangerously close.

"If you have a crush on me, you wouldn't mind if I did something, would you?" She whispered, looking up at me with the cutest expression possible.

"What?" I squeaked out.

"This."

With th that one word said, she closed the gap between us, causing our lips to meet. At first, I panicked. _She's a Huntress!_ My brain yelled. But then it melted and stopped protesting.

Maybe it's a good thing I didn't wait...

 **Hey guys! :) It was a romantic chapter! Ooh! Let me know what you think. I'm not great at romance writing. Anyways, next chapter will be regular 4 day, so Monday! :) See you then!**


	64. Chapter 64

**Hey guys! :) How's it going? I hope you're all wonderful! I'm doing pretty great myself, not gonna lie. :) I have several reasons to be a grumper (one of my stories for denied to be published, and both of my best friends went on vacation this weekend, so i was stuck at home) but I'm in a pretty good mood! It's unexplainable, so I'm just gonna roll with this. I'm reading The Fault In Our Stars, so I should be sad and crying, but I'm happy and I know it. ;) Anyways, thanks for all the reviews last chapter! I might have almost 800 follows and over 600 favorites, but I bet I'll always get excited for reviews, even if it's only three. Forty? That's just a crazy number to get within 24 hours. :) I'm glad everyone liked that romance scene last chapter! I wasn't quite sure about it. In case you can't tell, I don't really write a lot of romance. Which is odd, because for some reason this story's genre is romance. I should fix that... Again, sorry chapters are short but I'm not only a fanfic writer. I'm also a sleep-deprived teenager taking all honors classes in high school. Plus I have three younger siblings, so that's practically begging for little to no social life. But I do have a social life (however meager) and _then_ there's this. So I apologize for trying to be teen. :P (I'm just teasing you guys; I love you guys, but not in a way that's creepy.) This is already long so I'll cut it off here. (It's the longest one in a WHILE.) I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter! :) **

**Percy's POV (If you decide there were lemons after their** **kiss, Percy refuses to share the details with you in this story. Something about privacy...?)**

 _Maybe it's a good thing I didn't wait..._

With only four hours left until we departed, Zoë and I woke up from our nap and decided to make some food. We stood in the mini kitchen that I summoned in my room, cooking up some delicious tacos. (Not because tacos are my favorite food, but because I can really only cook either blue pancakes or blue tacos.)

We worked together effortlessly, as if we had always made tacos together in this kitchen. When we were ready to eat, I replaced the kitchen with a round table with two chairs.

"Your powers have really improved," Zoë observed as she sat down in the chair I had pulled out for her. Pushing her chair towards the table, I said, "Yeah, the self-teaching I did really seemed to help."

The rest of the conversation was mostly spent praising the food and avoiding the topic of war. As we picked at the strawberry shortcake I had made (conjured, same difference), too full to eat more but it was tasty enough to try, we ventured to new conversation topics.

"Your powers are pretty impressive. I can believe you made all this, Raven!"

I smiled at her, albeit a bit shyly. "... Percy. Call me Percy."

Zoë's face went from shocked to delighted quicker than I could follow. "Ok," she said, smiling back at me brightly. "Percy it is then."

We we continued to talk, and our last few hours breezes by much too quickly. If I wasn't the heir of Chaos, I would've suspected foul play. It seemed impossible for three and a half hours to go by so quickly. At Goode High School, three and a half hours felt like an eternity. How could it be so quick now?

I looked at Zoë, laughing at something (no doubt stupid) that I had said, and immediately knew the answer.

With twenty minutes left until we had to be to Chaos's office, Zoë and I left my room. I wheeled my suitcase on the carpet as Zoë ran to her roommate to grab her own luggage. With mine in my left hand and hers in her right hand, we walked side-by-side down the hall, holding hands and rolling our suitcases along next to us.

Yes, I could've just flashed us there, but I wanted some time to spend with Zoë, not having a care about anything. And she still needed her suitcase, either way.

We spent just over fifteen minutes strolling through the hallways, stepping out onto balconies and into gardens to admire the view from outside the castle walls. Just as time was almost up, however, I tightened my grip on Zoë's hand and flashed us both to Chaos's office.

Everyone was already there, waiting for us. Once we popped in, Luke wolf-whistled. "Yeah, man!" He cheered, causing both Zoë and I to turn red.

"Dude, please shut up," I said, not letting go of Zoë's small hand. Luke stopped talking, but not chuckling behind his hand.

"Now that we are all here, lets go!" Chaos announced, smiling. I could almost pretend that we were going on vacation to Disney World or someplace _fun_ instead of a war zone. Maybe we'll go to Disney World after we win this war. Assuming it's still there, and still the most magical place on Earth. I'd hate to get my hopes up for nothing.

Chaos snapped his fingers, and suddenly we were standing in a large aircraft that looked like the one I had accidentally crashed. I glanced down at the floor, hoping that no one else would make the connection, although everyone else had been there at one point too. Either when I went nuts and almost killed everyone, when I went nuts and tortured my now-girlfriend Zoë, or when I wend nuts and lost my temper before disappearing for about three weeks. Everyone saw at least one of those moments.

Zoë saw all three, and yet she was still standing next to me, holding my hand.

As if she knew what I was thinking, she squeezed my hand tightly. When I looked over at her, she smiled reassuringly. What did I do to deserve her?

Chaos was looking down at his watch. "In t-5, 4, 3, 2, 1," he counted before shouting, "BLAST OFF!"

Right on cue, we took off into the air. "Next stop, Olympus!"

 **Hey guys! Next chapter is Friday! Normal update for that. Sorry for the long beginning AN. I just get so excited... ;) See you Friday!**


	65. Chapter 65

**Hey guys! :) How's it going? Hope everyone is wonderful. Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! I really appreciate you guys taking the time to write me a message. :) I'm super glad you guys are shipping Perzoë in this story. Gotta be honest thiugh, Percabeth is probably my (fictional) OTP. You'd probably never guess, looking at my writing, since I usually avoid writing Percabeth in my longer fics. Or I have them break up or something. They're my OTP, hands down. Solangelo is super adorable too though. They're so cute! XD Enough of my fangirling though. Let's get on with things. I own nothing, but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _Right on cue, we took off into the air. "Next stop, Olympus!"_

We we flew for a while, me trying to take naps on and off during the flight. I'd wake up every hour or so and look around me. Chaos was always standing in the front of the room, peaking into the cockpit of the aircraft. Calypso was looking out the window half of the time and drawing a picture on a napkin the other half. I couldn't tell what it was, but it kind of looked like an elf. Bianca and Luke were sitting together diagonally across the room from where I was. Every time I looked over, they were leaning closer together, until I finally woke up to find them cuddling in their sleep. (I had to tease Luke for that after.)

The best part of waking up for a moment and looking around, however, was right next to me. Id glance around the room first, making shee every one was okay, then turn my gaze to my right shoulder.

A sleek mass of black hair was sitting on my shoulder. Underneath the hair was the sleeping face of my new lovely girlfriend, the beautiful and deadly Zoë Nightshade. With her leaning against me, though, fast asleep, she looked more like an angel than a dangerous huntress.

People always say faces look so peaceful when people are sleeping. (They always sound like creepers when they say it, but it's sweet in its own way.) I didn't really believe that until I saw Zoë. She always looked tough, ready for anything, able to cover up any emotion that would give her away. In her sleep, Zoë looked like an angel of innocence. It was hard to imagine sleeping and awake Zoë as the same person. One seeming so carefree, the other so guarded.

Much too soon, we arrived at Olympus. I reached over to Zoë, regretting what I had to do, but waking her up as gently as possible.

"Zoë," I murmured, "we're at Olympus, love."

Her eyes fluttered open, a soft smile on her lips when she saw me. "Hi baby," she mumbled. "We're here?"

I smiled back at her, enjoying the moment. "Yeah. We're here at Olympus. You ready?"

She he closed her eyes and stretched. "As I'll ever be."

"That's the spirit!"

A few minutes later, we had landed and the six of us were gathered outside the aircraft. Chaos gazed around. "It's been a while since I've been here. It looks better."

I nodded. "It was redesigned after the Second Titan War." I left out the part about Annabeth.

"As much as I've love to view it all now, this must wait until we make our victory lap around Olympus after this war." Chaos smirked. "I'll flash is over to the throne room. They'll never see us coming!"

Luke cheered, although as quietly as possible. "Let's go kick some ass!" Bianca laughed at his enthusiastic phrase.

"Come on bro, we got this!" I agreed, fist pumping with Luke.

Once we got over our beginning excitement, we all joined hands so it would be easier for Chaos to flash us all to the throne room.

We reappeared around the edge of the room, hidden in the shadows of the massive thrones. Zoë and I were behind Artemis's throne. Luke and Bianca were behind the throne of Hermes, and Calypso was hidden behind Hephaestus's throne. Chaos was no where to be seen.

Zeus and his allies were seated on their thrones, discussing their battle plans. We would have a prime opportunity to spy if we hadn't done it already. Suddenly, in the middle of Poseidon's "explanation" on why his Cyclopes and other workers couldn't help fight the battle, Chaos appeared.

He materialized out of thin air in the middle of the throne room, positioned so he has an eye on all of the opposing forces. "I see I lost my invitation in the mail," he casually stated, observing the shocked Olympians.

"Chaos!" Zeus squeaked. Then he cleared his throat and tried again. "Why are you here?"

My (adoptive) father snorted. "To do battle with you, of course."

"We aren't ready."

Chaos scoffed. "This isn't a child's game of hide-and-seek, Athena. Ready or not, here we come. We don't care if your forces aren't assembled; we were actually anticipating that. Less bloodshed, that way. And a quicker battle. We'd prefer to only be here for a few hours or so, two days at the most."

"What if we refuse to battle you so soon?" Hera demanded.

"My dear, you're in no position to try to make negotiations. You're only in this mess because of your idiotic husband. Who I may also add is your younger brother."

Hera turned red in anger and embarrassment.

"But, to answer the queen's question," Chaos continued, unfazed, "I would say that it's impossible to refuse to battle so soon. Using knowledge from my spy, I would find where your armies are being kept and simply attack them there. That would be our battle, with or without you. Even without you there, it would be considered our win in the war."

"Spy? You have a spy?" Apollo asked, looking confused and slightly afraid.

Smirking, Chaos said, "Of course I do. Wars are not won without espionage. Would you like to meet him?"

The Olympians remained silent and unmoving, until Demeter nodded a minuscule amount.

"I shall bring him in. Agent, come join the party!" Chaos called, his eyes trained on the shadows next to the throne of Aphrodite. Everyone's eyes slid over there before widening in surprise and, for the Olympians, fear.

 **Sorry the ending is kinda blunt. I wanted to make it a cliffie, but I didn't want to leave off in the middle of a sentence cause that can be weird sometimes. Anyway, next chapter is Wednesday. I'm going to a play tomorrow and I don't know when I'll be getting back. Just to be on the safe side, I'll take the day. See ya Wednesday! :)**


	66. Chapter 66

**Hey guys! How's it going? OMG Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! This fic now has over 1K! XD In case you can't tell, I'm psyched about that. Shoutout to ShieldRune5847 for being the 1000th reviewer! I'm also pretty pysched about people guessing about who they think the agent is. That made me so happy you have no idea. I'm not gonna tell you right now, cause you'll find out if you just read this chapter. And I can't just _tell_ you who the agent is! Not without a cliffie! Who do you guys think I am, a nice person? ;) Also, to the guest that shared that lovely fact about the presidents, your comment made me laugh loudly. :) That was pretty great. Trump is also the first president that's an Oompa-Loompa, as well. Fun fact. ;) Anyways, I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter you awesome people! :) **

**Percy's POV**

"I shall bring him in. Agent, come join the party!" Chaos called, his eyes trained on the shadows next to the throne of Aphrodite. Everyone's eyes slid over there before widening in surprise and, for the Olympians, fear.

"You? You're the spy?" Zeus asked, shocked and outraged. "You're supposed to be helping your father in the Underworld! That's the task you were assigned six months ago!"

Nico diAngelo shrugged, smirking. "Sorry to disappoint, but I found that the Underworld lacked the same juicy gossip that Olympus has."

Chaos grinned at Nico. "Nice work, agent."

The demigod bowed. "My pleasure, my lord."

"You dare bow to and address someone as Lord that isn't me?" Zeus bellowed, glaring at Nico from his throne.

Speaking to Chaos, Nico asked, "May I?"

Chaos considered it for a moment, then shook his head. "As entertaining as that would be, we have some more people here that would love to make a grand entrance. I apologize."

"I understand, sir."

Chaos turned in a circle, making eye contact with the shadows that concealed my friends and me. "My elite squad, come join the party."

"Gladly!" Luke said, stepping from the shadows along with Bianca. Zoë, Calypso, and I emerged from the shadows in time with them.

"I don't know... This can't be a party. There's too many people here with sticks up their asses," I protested, smirking.

"Oh!" Luke shouted, grinning. "Someone call an ambulance because these Olympians just got _BURNED_!" Like lunatics straight from an insane asylum, Luke and I both cackled together.

Chaos rolled his eyes. "This is my elite squad. My son and his best friend are the two idiots."

I smirked beneath my hood. "Hey," I said, waving. "Remember me?" Judging from the glare Zeus sent me and the wary gaze Poseidon adopted, I think they remembered me. "I'm Raven." Zeus's narrowed eyes told me that he was really treasuring my presence in his throne room.

(Sarcasm. That was sarcasm guys. Learn to take a joke, unlike Zeus, whose entire life is a joke. Ha! I'm hilarious. I crack myself up.)

"And I'm pretty sure I was just introduced as the incredibly awesome Messenger!" Luke grinned, only a hint of his lips visible through the shadow cast by his hood.

"I'm Black Diamond," Bianca introduced, staring at Nico from underneath her hood. He couldn't tell, though.

"I'm Sunshine!" Calypso greeted cheerfully, smiling at the assembled immortals. "I enjoy getting to be able to kill most of you on the battlefield soon!"

A long silence followed that statement before Zoë took her turn at an introduction. "Midnight," she said bluntly. "My name is Midnight." She scowled around the room at our enemies, each one shuddering or shrinking back from her gaze.

"I think the cheerful girl scares me the most," Apollo whispered to Ares. To my amusement, the war god didn't try to tell the sun god to man up. He just nodded his head, like it's perfectly reasonable to fear a nice girl named Sunshine.

Chaos cleared his throat. "Yes, anyways, I believe we are ready to battle?"

All the Olympians shook their heads no; my friends and I all shook our heads yes.

"Great! We shall do battle in one hour's time. That way we have enough time to out on our armor and prepare everything and everyone. We shall start the battle here," Chaos declared.

My friends and I gathered around Chaos. Those of us that had our backs turned to the gods were smirking, counting down slowly and silently.

" _3... 2... 1... Now!"_

Simultaneously with our countdown ending, Zeus desperately shouted, "Wait!"

Chaos looked at Zeus, uninterested. "Yes?"

The other gods were looking at Zeus, wondering what the heck he was doing now. Zeus himself was biting his lip as he spoke his next words. "What if it was just you guys against us?"

"You want to do this without armies?" The creator clarified. Shakily, Zeus nodded. "Very well. It shall be my elite squad and my spy against you six Olympians."

"You won't fight?" Athena asked, suspicious.

Chaos smirked. "Do you want me to?"

In a chorus of frightened voices, all the immortals except Athena bellowed, "No!" The goddess of wisdom turned red from the fierce glares her allies sent her.

"Then I suggest you all keep your mouths shut."

Luke and I laughed and high-fived as the Olympians looked like scolded children.

"We will be taking our leave now. We shall see the six of you here, one hour exactly. Do not be late. After all, this is _your_ home game." With that ominous message said, we all flashed back to the ship.

"Be ready to go in forty-five minutes, everyone!" Chaos announced.

"Wait, I thought it was an hour."

The creator smirked. "That _is_ what we gave the gods, Sunny. They'll take the full hour, I'm almost positive. We'll just make sure they don't _cheat_."

Bianca grinned slyly at the last word, her eyes lighting up at the suggestion. "Is that what we'll do?"

Chaos nodded, smirking. We all copied his facial expression, looking gleeful.

"See you back here in forty-five minutes!"

Grabbing Zoë's hand, I rushed away.

 **Hey guys! So the next chapter is really gonna be postponed. :( I have All State rehearsal Friday and Saturday (all day) and the concert is Sunday. I'm missing school Friday so I have a ton of homework too. Therefore, next chapter will have to be Tuesday (hopefully). I'll shoot for Tuesday. See you then! :)**


	67. Chapter 67

**Hey guys! How's it going? *crickets* Anyways, thanks for all the reviews last chapter! The concert this weekend was great. Thanks for the well-wishes! I was totally freaking out about it before hand (cause I mean, this is All State. The best of the best. I didn't want to be _that_ person that screws everyone over) but it went pretty well! :) Also, I'm pretty sure this story is winding down. If everything (in this story and in my life) goes pretty much as planned, then this should be done pretty soon. There's gonna be the war and then an epilogue thing probably. And then the end. With that in mind, please vote on my poll if you haven't already! I'm going to write a new story, so go vote in the poll to let me know what _you_ think I should right! I also accept PMs and reviews on any of my stories! If someone wants to know what the options are (you can't see them, etc) or if you want to know a brief summary behind one of the ideas, shoot me a message! I usually get back within 24 hours. Poll is on my profile. If you need directions there (even if you're on a phone/iPod or something), again send me a PM and I will direct you there. Anyways, I own nothing but please enjoy this long awaited chapter! :) **

**PS: I repeat, I do NOT write smut. Sorry for disappointing some people. You're free to use these characters/places/situations to write your own. You can let me know if you do so I can share the information with every body that keeps asking me.**

 **Percy's POV**

" _See you back here in forty-five minutes!"_

 _Grabbing Zoë's hand, I rushed away._

Forty-five minutes passed quickly. Most of the minutes weren't spent getting armor on. In fact, after forty minutes had passed, Zoë grabbed my arm and _kindly_ reminded (read: forcefully demanded) me to put on my armor and help her with hers. After the five minute scramble though, we were miraculously suited up and ready to go.

Luke winked at me when we met up with everyone at the heart of the ship. "Took you guys long enough! We were worried about what was keeping you." He smirked as he said it. Zoë's face matched a fire truck in color, and I'm sure mine did too.

"Shut up, Luke," I managed. Then I looked over his smirking face and slightly crooked armor. Bianca's wasn't perfect either, and I know from past experience that she is a perfectionist with her armor. "Looks like you were busy too."

I raised an eyebrow at my best friend and then glanced over at Bianca, nodding. To my joy, both of their faces turned tomato red, just as mine and Zoë's had.

Before things could escalate further, Chaos interrupted. "Alright everyone, lets get to the throne room. Join hands!"

We all held hands, Calypso and Luke connecting everyone else to Chaos. Once we were ready, we disappeared in a Flash of light onto to reappear in the Olympian throne room. After everyone had completely made the journey, we all separated to spread our traps.

Zoë and I walked towards Poseidon's throne. "This place brings back old memories," I said wistfully, looking around. "I was here so many times. Working for the Olympians, working with them, being accused by them, threatening them, and working against them. Every single time, though, they've threatened to kill me or someone I care about."

The beautiful huntress next to me gripped my hand. "That won't happen this time. I won't let them even think about it. Killing my boyfriend? No way in Hell would they get away with that."

I smiled at my strong-willed girlfriend. "And I would rather go back to Tartarus than let them do anything to you."

Zoë laughed. "You better! But don't worry, they won't get me. Not again."

"They better not. There'll be hell to pay if one of them even so much as scratches you."

Zoë leaned in to kiss me quickly. She pulled away, about to turn around and set more traps, but I grabbed her waist and pulled her back into me. "We're about to head into a war," I told her. "We deserve this."

Someone cleared their throat behind us, interrupting our little make-out session. I turned the stink eye on whoever had bothered us.

Calypso was smirking at the two of us, her arms crossed and her right eyebrow raised. "It's almost time for the Olympians to arrive. You should probably find your hiding spot and get in position before they show up. Once you're situated, you can always continue trying to eat each other's face." She walked away before we could protest or try to get our faces to mimic the color of a baboon's buttock.

After a moment, we found a safe place behind Artemis's throne, where we totally didn't continue to make out. (I'll let you decide on that last part of the sentence: true or false?) It wouldn't be smart to make out with an ex-huntress behind her lady's throne. But then again, who said I was smart?

A few minutes later, the gods all teleported in. First it was Apollo, then Demeter, then everyone else all at once. Zeus stood slightly behind his brother, Poseidon, trying not to show that he is the coward everyone believes (and knows) him to be.

"Chaos!" He thundered (pun intended, haha), quivering behind the God of the sea as my adoptive father appeared before them.

"Olympians," he greeted coldly, before raising an eyebrow. "Do you call me to surrender?"

Zeus scoffed, trying to regain his meager amount of courage now that all his allies were staring at him. "Surrender? Never!"

"Then why call me? I am not fighting in this battle." The other gods seemed to realize this too, judging by the dirty looks they sent the lightning god.

"To... So you can summon your warriors, and we can do battle!" He claimed, smirking at the quick comeback he thought up on the spot.

Chaos accepted the excuse. "Very well." Snapping his fingers, he made it seem like we had all appeared in that instant. White glows around each of our bodies made it appear that we had just been flashed in if you hadn't noticed us standing in the shadows.

With Uncle Hades and Aunt Hestia safe in the Underworld, out of the conflict, there was no worry about them seeing us early.

My five friends and I stepped out from the darkness, approaching the Olympians. Without planning it, we formed a line with Zoë and I in the center. Bianca and Luke were on my right, while Calypso ans Nico were on Zoë's left.

"Are you ready to do battle?" Athena asked, eyeing us suspiciously.

I smirked back at her from beneath my hood. "Question is, are _you_ ready to die?" With that cheerful question posed, I signaled my team silently. As one, we summoned our weapons and charged the gods.

 **Hey guys! Next chapter will be Monday. I have two more concerts this week, one Wednesday and one Thursday. I'm working and playing myself into a hole. There's so much work to do! And I missed school Friday of last week for al state rehearsal... This'll be the death of me lol. Anyways, this chapter was alightly longer than normal! Yay! Next chapter will be some fighting! Ooh... Let's hope I do a good job writing it! :) See you Monday!**


	68. Chapter 68

**Hey guys! How's it going? *more crickets* Thanks for all the reviews last chapter! I'm going to talk a little bit about the plan for the coming ending of this story. It should be hopefully no more than five chapters more. I'm shooting for three at most though. Including this chapter. We have the battle, and then the aftermath of the battle, and then a Perzoë epilogue. Cause we have to end with a fluffy finale. :) If you have any fluffy (not smutty) Perzoë ideas that you'd like to possibly see me do, send me a PM or leave it in a review! And don't worry, there will be a grand reveal! ;) Also, don't forget to vote in the poll! If you want I can PM one of you guys the summary of one idea, so you get a feel for it. Or I can post it here. Just ask! I accept votes via review and PM too, so just let know! I'll tell you the final decision with the last chapter of this. Anyways I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **Percy's POV (this gets a little intense, so proceed with caution)**

 _I smirked back at her from beneath my hood. "Question is, are you ready to die?" With that cheerful question posed, I signaled my team silently. As one, we summoned our weapons and charged the gods._

The Olympians met us head on. There was one of them for every one of us, except for Demeter, who decided to team up with Apollo on taking down Nico. Every few seconds, I couldn't help but peak around the room to make sure everyone was holding their ground.

Nico was fairing well against the son God and the goddess of agriculture. Plants, after all, didn't surivive long facing shadows and death, and after dating his son, Nico seemed pretty much immune to many of the visual and auditory weapons Apollo threw at him.

Across the throne room, Bianca's twin short swords were fighting against Athena's spear and shield. The daughter of Hades didn't look to be distracted by the hideous face marring the shiny surface of the shield that the wisdom goddess kept raised to block the blows meant for her neck.

Next to the two, Luke and Ares were locked in their own battle. Ares kept jabbing at Luke with his electric spear that mirrored the one he had given to Clarisse all those years ago in Camp Half Blood. Luke deflected each blow with a double-sided sword that mimicked the design of his cursed two-tone blade, Backbiter. Every few seconds, the demigod would find a small gap in Ares' guard and manage to nick his skin. Golden blood dripped down the war god's armor from various scratches.

Towards the wall near the thrones, Calypso was in the process of bringing down the queen of the gods. Hera's staff with a blade jutting from the top was no match for Calypso's shield and dagger. She would block a poorly-aimed strike before slipping from behind the shield like a snake, slashing the dagger across Hera's porcelain skin before the goddess had a chance to retaliate.

Zoë and I were sharing the middle of the throne room in our battle, standing practically back to back. She was facing the king of the gods, while I was bringing hell to the man that ruined the life he gave me.

Zeus was playing neither offense nor defense against Zoë. He had no sword out, yet he was using a lightning bolt as if it _were_ a sword. If Zoë advanced too close to him, he would flung it at her. While she dodged, the coward would grab another from a seemingly-bottomless sheath. Zoë, however, was standing her ground. Despite the lightning god's antics, she had been able to draw blood and was splashing through a small puddle of the golden liquid every time she took a step. Her shoes and the hem of her cloak were dripping with it.

Poseidon thrust his trident at me, stealing my attention away from my allies. "Fight me!" He barked, shoving the weapon in my direction and leaving his entire side wide open to an attack. Without words, I granted his request.

Taking my sword, I flicked the trident to my left, creating an even wider gap in Poseidon's defense. Surprised by my sudden movement, the sea god did nothing but watch me until his body forced his mind to catch up. By then, however, I had already lifted my foot to kick his shin and shallowly slash at the god's side. Although the wound was shallow, blood still came gushing out.

"Do you still want me to fight you?" I asked, looking down at the man i had once looked up to. In response, he growled at me and swung his trident again.

I dodged easily, expecting the move. Poseidon did not predict that I would move, and the momentum carried him forwards and opened his other side to attack. I repeated the injuries on the left side of his body.

"Fight me like a man!" The sea God snarled, struggling to his feet. From underneath my hood, I glared.

"I will fight you however I want!" I bellowed, striking him on his wounded right side with the flat of my blade, sending pain shooting through his failing body. "You did not speak to me like a man when you betrayed me!"

"I can see why not!" He spat, looking at me with unveiled hatred. "You're a coward, hiding behind your dirty tricks!" Poseidon gathered the blood that was gathering in his mouth and let it stain my shoes gold.

I let my eyes glow blue, illuminating the entire throne room through my hood. Dimly, I was aware of all the other fights ceasing, everyone turning to stare at Poseidon and me.

"You know _nothing_!" I exclaimed, a sudden gust of wind knocking the sea God off his feet at the last word. He had previously been crouched over, not at his full high but still standing fairly tall. After he fell, however, he appeared to grovel at my feet.

" _You_ cast me into the pits of hell! _You_ disowned me and stripped me of my identity, tarnishing my legacy! _You_ made me ashamed to once look up to the man I believed you to be! _You_ were my ultimate betrayal! _You_ are the main reason that your allies will all die a painful death in the heart of Tartarus at the hands of primordials!" Each time I growled out a new sentence, the sea god received a kick to his ribs. After the third kick, I heard the first snap. After I finished my exclamation, I threw five kicks at the sniveling God. In return, I heard three short snaps like bursts from a machine gun.

Poseidon let loose a blood-chilling scream that instantly paralyzed all those in the room, enemies and allies alike. It could not stop me, though. Nothing would be able to until I had him begging to me for any death.

"Get up," I said. When he did not immediately show signs of movement, I kicked his ribs again, listening to them creak in protest, before jabbing my toe into his face. Poseidon gave another scream, this one shorter than the first but no less painful. " _Get up!_ "

Again, he did not move. Snarling at him, I grabbed his arm and pulled him to his feet. His body was like a sack filled with bricks. His arm could not handle the force I was using to haul his weight, and popped him its socket. Another scream, but now Poseidon was standing before me.

He was truly a sight to see. Blood oozed down his sides from the twin slashes my sword gave him. His lip was split in half, the golden liquid drying on his face from when I kicked him. From under his bloodstained, ripped shirt, I saw the tell-tale signs of extreme internal bleeding starting. Poseidon's green eyes, once identical to mine, were glazed with pain and half-lidded.

"Who-who are you-u?" He stumbled over his words, swaying on his feet that barely managed to keep him standing up. A gentle breeze would have easily knocked him over. I could feel all the eyes in the room on us, most of them expectant or fearful. I decided to indulge them one last time.

I circled around Poseidon. He tried to swivel his head to watch me at first, but that made him lose what little balance he had left. Instead, he remained looking straight ahead, clutching his sides to stall the blood flow and ease the pain in his chest.

"I used to be a hero. I used to fight for Olympus, until I was betrayed. The love of my life was fatally wounded by a monster, yet I received the deserving beast's punishment. Did anyone listen to my side of the story? A few. None of them are here now. No, all you Olympians trusted the slick words of your king, who claimed inwas a murdered and traitor. I am neither. But I was voted guilty, and you, Poseidon, had the _honor_ of redeeming your mistake by pushing me into Tartarus. I vowed that I would be back." I spread my arms out widely, facing the sea god. "Aren't you glad to see me?"

From across the room, Athens gasped. "It can't be..."

I laughed, the same maniacal sound from over twenty years ago when I was falling into the pit. All the Olympians flinched at the harsh sound. "Looks like Athena already put two and two together! That's why shes the wisdom goddess." I laughed again.

"But who-who are you?" Hera dared ask from her position next to a large golden throne.

"Who am I?" I repeated, pointing to myself. She nodded hesitantly. "I'm surprised you Olympians don't all remember now! I guess I'm not as special as I thought. You must've thrown a lot of demigods into Tartarus in the last twenty years for no good reason!"

"See here–" Zeus cut in next to Zoë, taking a step towards me.

i interrupted him. "I," i began, surveying my captive audience, "I am the Black Hearted Warrior! I am Perseus Jackson!"

I ripped my hood off my head accompanied by the series of gasps that echoed throughout the throne room.

"But you're dead!" Apollo spoke, sounding panicked.

"Sorry to disappoint, but I must insist that I'm feeling pretty _alive_ right now!" My last words were punctuated by a large grin and crazy laughter. I felt like the Joker, and _man_ was I enjoying it.

Poseidon hacked, golden blood flying from his mad coughing along with spittle. His green eyes bore into my darker ones. "Y-You... You..." He stuttered, his body slowly shutting down from the intense pain.

"I...?" I taunted, leering at him.

"Deserve..."

"Greatness? Better than you as my father? Success? Happiness?" I supplied bitterly.

We were all subconsciously leaning closer to the sea god, hanging on his every word.

"... Tartarus," he finally choked out.

"Tartarus?" I repeated, unbelieving. His sea green eyes rolled back in his head, and Poseidon fell. Everyone winced as his body hit the ground, but I did nothing.

"Tartarus?!" I roared. "If anyone deserves Tartarus, it's you! You and your allies!" I was screaming at the unconscious god. My heart started beating faster. During the entire battle, I hadn't let myself lose control until that point. I knew what was happening, but I was powerless to stop it.

A soft hand grabbed my shoulder. "Percy," Zoë whispered, spinning me around gently but firmly. "Calm down."

"But he..." I weakly protested.

She nodded. "I know. Dont listen to him. You deserve the world."

I looked through her hood and into her shining, dark eyes before leaning in to kiss her. "Thank you."

Together, Zoë and I turned around to face all our enemies. "You have seen what we can do," I announced, my voice carrying loudly through the throne room. "Give up now, and we shall spare you your lives."

As one, the standing Olympians glanced at their fallen comrade and raised their hands for surrender.

I smiled at Zoë. "We did it."

She slipped off her hood, smiling back, her eyes twinkling. "We sure did."

 **Hey guys! Wow, this was a long chapter! I can't believe it. I hope you liked it, since it was nearly double the length of a normal chapter! Anyways, next update is Saturday, cause I'm busy Friday. See you then! :)**


	69. Chapter 69

**Hey guys! Hows it going? Thanks for all the reviews last chapter. Next chapter is the last chapter, not this one. This one will (hopefully) wrap everything up. We'll see how things all end up. Then the last one will be a bit of Perzoë to send you on your way. :) I'll also announce my next story there, which I hope everyone will check out! :) Also, based on the reviews from last chapter, a lot of people weren't too pleased with the results. Don't worry, the Olymoians will still get punished! By "spared", Percy meant that they wouldn't be killed. He said nothing about them not living in pain for all eternity, am I right? (I am, cause I wrote the chapter. That was a rhetorical question right there.) Also, some more review stuff. Annabeth and Bianca tried for rebirth at different times, so it didn't work for Bianca but it did for Annabeth. I believe Annabeth was still alive when Bianca tried for rebirth. Yes, Percy is still a bit of a wimp, but I'm more of a lover, not a fighter myself. But I will verbally fight people, just not physically. I have no strong muscles, especially in my upper body. Especially muscles trained for fighting. Anyways, I own nothing but please enjoy this chapter! :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _I smiled at Zoë. "We did it."_

 _She slipped off her hood, smiling back, her eyes twinkling. "We sure did."_

Things progressed after that. Chaos assisted my team and I with the dishing out of punishments to the losing Olympians, and we reviewed the current Olympians. Hades took the place of Zeus as king of Olympus, and Persephone became his queen. She took over most of her mother's domains as well. Demeter couldn't perform her duties from the barren wasteland she was cast off to in the middle of the sea of monsters.

The other Olympians remained with the titles and jobs they had previously had. Hestia became an Olympian, replacing her brother Poseidon on the Olympian power-spectrum.

Hecate was granted the privilege of becoming an Olympian as well, as long as she didn't try to start another rebellion and overthrow her fellow gods.

Leo Valdez took up the throne as well, joining his father on the council. Calypso was overjoyed when Leo took his oath to become an Olympian, and Leo mirrored her excitement when she revealed herself to him. (At least, I'm assuming their make-out session was because they were so excited to see each other again.)

Will Solace also joined the council, replacing his father as the new sun god. Nico seemed thrilled when Will was sworn in. Will seemed thrilled too, but because of the fact that Nico wasn't killed during our battle against the damned Olympians.

Of of those rejected gods, Demeter was not the only one to receive punishment. They all got their consequences for being terrible rulers and siding with Zeus, no more so than Zeus himself and Poseidon.

Poseidon's punishment was one I came up with myself. During the second giant war, Polybotes threatened to take me underwater and torture me to the brink of death, only to have the water keep me alive. That was Poseidon's eternal suffering. He was locked in a prison cell that every day filled with poison. At the end of the day, it would seep out and be replaced by water, resurrecting the sea God. Occasionally, I was granted permission to visit with him. I made it a point of keeping things... _Interesting_ for the old God.

The new Olympian council and my friends from Chaos's army helped come up with the punishments of the other banished criminals.

Zoë invented the one for Zeus. Every day, as soon as the sun rose, Zeus would start in the sky, practically touching the stars. Then he would fall for what seems like ages before smashing into Death Valley in the United States. All the damned Olympians had their godly powers and abilities stripped from them, except their immortality, so Zeus couldn't move after the fall, being so weak. An eagle would fly over and claw out his intestines, causing the Lightning God to suffer just as Prometheus did before Heracles saved him. Except this time there would be no one to save him. This cycle repeated itself every day, ending only if Zeus was saved, or eternity finally ended.

Athena's torture was thought up by Nico (the sometimes-terrifying kid). He devised a giant hole in the ground that Athena would be trapped in, hundreds of feet below the surface. He also asked his boyfriend, the new sun god, to bless thousands upon millions of spiders to never die. These spiders were dumped into the hole in the ground, along with the horrified wisdom goddess.

Calypso thought up a punishment for Ares. Between the girl that invented it and the punishment itself, Calypso suddenly became a whole lot scarier. She found a dark cave, or maybe she created it. With her boyfriend's help, she lined the walls with gasoline that was cursed to always keep burning. The war God was sealed inside the dripping cave before Leo Valdez set the place alight. Sometimes I happen to be walking by and I can still hear his tortured screams.

Hephestus says that it serves his brother right for stealing his wife.

Hera had a more... Standard type of torture, I suppose. Being the goddess of marriage, she didn't really have many oppositions or fears. Therefore, Bianca decided that the best torture for this goddess would be to lock her in a prison cell where her jailer could come abuse her. As with all the others, I sat in occasionally for her torture sessions, if only just to make sure her jailer hadn't gone soft.

Luke thought up Apollo's torture, one that I must admit impressed me. The sun god would be trapped in a cave, but unlike his brother's, it was not doused in gasoline. It was, however, pitch black. It was designed so that every once in a while, the time varying, a light would go off in the cave. Instead of stone walls, the cave had walls are of mirrors. Each one would reflect a person that Apollo somehow wronged in his life, someone he felt guilty over. It wasn't a physical torture, unlike the others. But it was an extreme mental one.

That was a year ago. Since then, Olympus and the world have both flourished without the rule of that tyrant, Zeus, and his leage of Olympian lackies. I was back to living on Chaos's planet with my friends, but we remained in close contact with Earth and its new rulers. Especially Calypso and Nico, if you get what I'm saying.

But for me, Zoë Nightshade was the only woman on my mind.

 **Hey guys! I really am sorry for such the long wait for this chapter! I'm telling the truth with the sudden moving and stuff. There was also a mix up with the dates, so my house went on the market about four days before we were ready, and people wanted to tour it the next day. It's all (mostly) under control now. I still have a lot of cleaning and other fun (not) stuff to do for it, but nothing too crazy. However, I am finishing this story before my spring break if it kills me! Last chapter is the next one! Wow. If there's any Perzoë fluff ideas you have, LET ME KNOW! Ok. Last chapter will be posted Monday (hopefully). I need a little bit to work out the chapter exactly (since it's the finale) and I also have stuff to do. Thanks guys! You're awesome. :)**


	70. Chapter 70

**Hey guys! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter. So, this is the end. :( I'm crying a little, I'll be honest. After 70 chapters, I feel like everything has gone so quickly but it still feels like yesterday when I started this story. You guys have been so awesome and I couldn't have done this without you and your support. We've had a few flames, and a wonderful amount of constructive critics, and I feel like it really paid off in the end. :) I had so much fun writing this story and I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I did writing it. The results from my poll are in as well. The next story I write will be a Percy Jackson werewolf AU. I hope you guys check it out! It'll be posted sometime by the end of the month. If anyone wants me to PM them when I post chapter 1, let me know! I don't have a title yet, or else I would've told you. I'll also probably put up another poll soon. So if your favorite option isn't the werewolf AU, you have an opportunity to vote again! :) I'll stop stalling and get on with the fluff. I own nothing but please enjoy this finale chapter. :)**

 **PS: Again, feel free to use places/ideas from this story with your own. I'd love it if you let me know, so I can check it out! :)**

 **Percy's POV**

 _But for me, Zoë Nightshade was the only woman on my mind._

 **Zoë's POV**

It was two years after the new Olympian council came to order. Some said that what we did wasn't the right thing; we were replacing cruel dictators with slightly kinder ones. However, anything was better than the reign of terror that Zeus was ushering in.

Percy, my occasionally idiotic boyfriend, had sent me a message earlier to meet him at this cabin on Earth. We had just finished a regular meeting with the new Olympians, so we were already on our home planet. Percy sent me the coordinates to this place, a place I had never been before, and said he'd meet me soon.

The spot I was at was a rickety cabin on the ocean. The cabin itself was really small, only for about three people at most. Spiders and cobwebs dotted the corners. If he brought Annabeth here, I doubt she would've enjoyed it.

I wasn't jealous of the love I knew Percy held for Annabeth. Part of him would always love her, but she was unreachable to him. Choosing rebirth... And now that he's an immortal, _and_ the heir of basically the entire universe, any relationship between them would be complicated.

Part of Percy would always belong to Annabeth, and that was completely understandable. I could only hope that I held the rest.

I was sitting on the feeble steps to the small cabin when I caught sight of Percy walking towards me from further away by the shore. Hopping up, I dusted myself off before walking towards him.

His hood was off, letting his black hair get ruffled by the breeze rolling off the ocean. He smiled at me when he saw me, his white teeth flashing in the light reflecting off the waves as he picked up the pace, jogging towards me.

"Zoë!" He exclaimed gleefully, wrapping me up in his arms and spinning me around when he reached me. "I'm so glad you're here!"

I laughed when my feet returned to Earth, slightly shocked at first by how excited Percy seemed to be. "Of course I'm here, you idiot! Why would I stand you up?"

His green eyes sparkled as his cheeks dimpled from his stupidly adorable grin. "I don't know! But I'm really glad you didn't."

"So you keep saying." I eyed his outfit. "So, whats the occasion?"

In in the message Percy had sent me, he had said to wear "something nice". I had donned an ankle-length royal blue dress, fit for the summer season taking place in the Northern Hemisphere of Earth. The straps were two billowy slices of the same cloth that made up the dress's skirt, just thick enough to support the light weight outfit. I was just goad I had decided to wear silver sandals instead of heels.

Percy himself was a sight to behold. Chaos himself had to have done something to make him look so... _Dashing_. Not that he isn't always, because he _is_ , but he looked particularly so that evening. He had on a navy blue pair of dress pants and a matching jacket over a plain white shirt. The whole outfit was tied together with a royal blue tie that almost exactly matched the color of my dress. He couldn't of known what I was going to wear though!

Percy smiled at me. "If everything goes right, then I hope this will be a very special occasion."

I raised an eyebrow. "Ok... Do you care to elaborate?"

He nodded enthusiastically. "Yes! But first, can you close your eyes?" I looked at him dubiously before complying.

A few seconds passed. Then, "Okay, you can open your eyes now."

I peeled back my eyelids to gasp in surprise.

Percy Jackson was kneeling in front of me in the sand, no doubt getting his nice navy blue pants all sandy. His hands, shaking slightly, were clenched around a box with a ring perched inside of it.

The ring itself was simple but still so beautiful. It was made up of two bands intertwined together, one silver and the other gold. They weaved around each other, creating a two-tone braid. There weren't any fancy stones in it, but the ring took my breath away regardless.

Percy looked nervous. "I know we haven't been together for that long," he started, "but to me it feels like forever. When I first met you, I thought you were stunningly beautiful. But you were a huntress then, and we could never have been together. Now, however, the fates have stopped hating me as much and they're finally letting me be happy. Zoë, I love you. And I hope that the fates have shown me to a woman that wcane love me as much as I love her."

Unsble to resist teasing him, especially when he looked so nervous, I raised my eyebrow as I grinned at him. "Are you trying to propose to me?"

His eyes widened. "Um... I think so. I don't think there's any other kind of custom that involves kneeling and holding a ring. There isn't, right?"

I laughed, unable to stop myself. "I don't think so."

Percy looked instantly relieved. "Oh thank Chaos." He cleared his throat. "So, Zoë Nightshade, will you do me the honor of being Mrs. Jackson?"

For a moment, I pretended to ponder it, watching Percy pale ever so slightly. I crumbled quickly, throwing my arms around his neck. Percy fell back from the sudden weight on him, but caught himself swiftly.

"Yes! Yes, I will marry you!"

I could practically feel Percy smiling against me. "Really?"

I was too elated to be sarcastic. "Of course, you idiot!" Pulling back, I took in his big goofy grin before crashing my lips against him.

A moment later, we pulled apart for air. Percy leaned his forehead against mine. "I love you, so much," he whispered.

I smiled softly. "I love you too."

THE END

 **Well, that's all folks! Can't say I'm not a little disappointed that it's over. I'm kinda sad. But I'll post a new story soon enough! So that'll be good. It'll be posted by the end of the month, just a reminder. Also, let me know if you want a PM to let you know when the first chapter is posted! No clue what it'll be called, so don't ask yet! ;) I had so much fun writing this story for you guys. I really enjoyed the process, and I hope you did too! :) Thanks so much for helping me with this. I couldn't have done it without you guys! I hope I'll see some familiar usernames on my next story. Thank you, and I hope everyone has a wonderful day/week/month/year/life! :)**


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